About this WINE
Chardonnay
Chardonnay is often seen as the king of white wine grapes and one of the most widely planted in the world It is suited to a wide variety of soils, though it excels in soils with a high limestone content as found in Champagne, Chablis, and the Côte D`Or.
Burgundy is Chardonnay's spiritual home and the best White Burgundies are dry, rich, honeyed wines with marvellous poise, elegance and balance. They are unquestionably the finest dry white wines in the world. Chardonnay plays a crucial role in the Champagne blend, providing structure and finesse, and is the sole grape in Blanc de Blancs.
It is quantitatively important in California and Australia, is widely planted in Chile and South Africa, and is the second most widely planted grape in New Zealand. In warm climates Chardonnay has a tendency to develop very high sugar levels during the final stages of ripening and this can occur at the expense of acidity. Late picking is a common problem and can result in blowsy and flabby wines that lack structure and definition.
Recently in the New World, we have seen a move towards more elegant, better- balanced and less oak-driven Chardonnays, and this is to be welcomed.
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Description
This wine has all the quality of Californian sunshine in a glass, without recourse to oak.
Villa San Maurice Chardonnay is made by Mountain View Wines of San Rafael , founded in 1978 and who have been described by Robert Parker as producing Californian wines that represent “some of the best value in the marketplace”. The fruit for this wine was sourced from vineyards planted in 1985 in the cool climate region of Monterey, possibly more famous for iconic rock festivals in the 1960s.
The wine is unoaked, being fermented and matured in temperature controlled stainless steel vessels, but has added richness as a result of some contact with yeast lees, and a rounded, full-bodied character from undergoing a 100% malolactic fermentation. The cool climate has kept the sometimes excessive Californian alcohol in check, but this does not mean there is any lack of ripeness in the wine.
Martin Hudson MW, Wine Buyer
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