The Wine Shelf Select
A Superb Under $11 Australian Chardonnay from Cameron Hughes
Available at Costco
An Outstanding Wine Worth Tracking Down (Out of the Park for the Price)
2007 Cameron Hughes Lot 68 Chardonnay
Australia (Margaret River - Western Australia) 14.2% Alcohol
Screwcap Closure (Increasingly common even in Expensive Wines)
Available at: Costco $10.99 (most, but not all Bay Area Stores)....in stock at Novato, Richmond, Redwood City, and Danville
A stunning wine for the money - certainly one of the best white wines under $15 I've had in the last several years
My Tasting Notes: Enjoyed Over Three Consecutive Nights - Both With and Without Food
Lovely wine with perfect balance (what a treat and what a deal at under $11 a bottle). Its true quality emerges when the wine is served at around 65 degrees (cool but not cold). It's the texture and mouthfeel of this wine that really put it in a league with $25-$50 Chardonnays. Just a tinge of oak in the nose and in the taste of the wine. In the mouth the combination of ripe (pure) Chardonnay fruit (apples), a creamy texture, and a soft lingering finish add up to an outstanding wine experience. Good acidity and citrus components as well. The 14% alcohol does not overwhelm the drinker, but this is a wine best enjoyed during the coolness of evening.
While the fruit is ripe, the wine does not taste of California. A wine with a sense of place - the mark of all wines which merit a special search. This wine proves that quality and low price can go hand in hand. You just gotta look and taste.
Readers - you be the judge, but to my palate, simply outstanding wine!
Taste: 3 Stars Value: 4 Stars (easily) Overall: 3 Stars to 3.5 Stars