Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
So, this is an impromptu review of a not half bad Chardonnay! I bought a bottle this past week from Ocado, intending to make risotto with it. When you read its blurb, it does suggest that it goes extremely well with seafood and as it was prawn risotto I was planning to make, I thought, why not? It’s priced at £11.99 at Ocado, which means that you can probably pick it up for a £9 – £10 elsewhere!
The long and the short of it is that I changed my mind, too lazy to make risotto today and decided to make some pizza instead, which by the way, is proofing as I type this! As I hadn’t bought anything to drink for the weekend (what was I thinking?), the now kind of moot chardonnay was just begging to be sampled – know what I mean?
The Bioletti Block Chardonnay 2013 is a Californian white, made by Julian Grubb in the famed Californian Central Valley, known for its world class grapes.
Wait, let me take another sip before I go on, just to be on the safe side – be right back!
Oh, did I mention that I’m not a white wine drinker? At all? Bearing that in mind, here goes!
Colour: a very bright off yellow, lemon, is how it’s described in the “official” summary.
Nose: I smell watermelon, and not much oak at all, in keeping with many Californian Chardonnay producers wanting to tone down the oak and let the grapes speak for themselves.
Taste: Mmm, this is a tough one because as mentioned, I’m not a white wine drinker but does the fact that I found this Chardonnay more than adequate mean that it’s rather good, especially at that price? The wine does go down pretty easily, despite its rather bold character.
Verdict: If I were going to a summer party, I wouldn’t hesitate buying a bottle of this if white wine was the preferred choice. Ocado has from time to time reduced this to half its price, so at 50% off, you definitely can’t go wrong!