California - Chardonnay 2019 - Gallo Family
Chadonnay
2019 - California
Gallo Family
Rating: 4/5
So far, Gallo Family Wines are coming strong. This Chardonnay is full of character and oak - something uncommon for European Chardonnays in this price range, which tend to be more acidic and mineral. In fact, New World Wines tend to be way more intense. This Chardonnay is a great example of what New World Wines are all about.
Nose before swirling
Before swirling the main aroma that can be felt is a clear and strong woody aroma with some notes of peach and tobacco. It's clear on this first glance that we will have lots of oak-cask-based aromas.
Nose after swirling
After swirling, floral and mineral tones come to the forefront with the intense wood aroma showing its presence firmly on the back.
Taste in the mouth
In the mouth, peach and tobacco are imposing, with an intense creamy feeling. Since this Wine is young, all of the wood-based aromas are thanks to the extreme porosity of the American oak that was - almost certainly - used in its production. This Wine has a long mineral finish with leather getting more defined the longer you wait.
After smell in the glass
On the glass, the smells of animals linger, maybe due to a malolactic fermentation. Also, some smells remind us of ripe fruits at the end of summer.
Conclusions:
This is a great Chardonnay, with lots of fruit aromas and leather-based aromas. It's 100% different from European Chardonnays unless you go searching for extremely woody ones (that are truly uncommon in this price range). If you're looking for a great companion of those long talks with your significant other, this Chardonnay can surely add a new topic to talk about.
This is a really solid Chardonnay, that made me fall in love with it almost the moment I had the first sip. I still can imagine the enologist tasting those vats with a pleased look on his/her face.
As a rating, this wine is a solid 4/5, great fruity aromas, lots of wood aromas, long finish and costing a surprising 4.99€ (in Stuttgart, Germany at least).
(1 = poor; 2 = acceptable; 3 = good; 4 = very good; 5 = outstanding)
