Yes, I know…It’s been far too long…By the time I come up with an idea of what I’m going to blog about; my next event, my next tasting, or whatever the case may be, I find by the time it comes to write, I’m uninspired.  There’s nothing that is compelling me to write.  Mostly, because I haven’t tasted anything where my taste buds have danced and said “wow” forwards and backwards many times!  I like being inspired.  In fact, often I wait for inspiration to strike before I’ll even write.  You’d think the fact that I work in a wine store would make for easy subjects.  True, I’ve tasted some beauties there, but I’m working!  So, those tend to get posted to my page; I can’t just whip out a laptop and start blogging…

So then I got to thinking:  Am I morphing into a wine snob? All this “pretentiousness” that I’ve been preaching about, am I becoming “one of those”?  (GASP) To be blunt, am I turning into a wine as…er, I mean a Wine Donkey? I see some very good friends around me being able to taste some stellar wines, and I’ll admit it, I’m jealous! Or rather, feeling left out. But hey, that’s life right? I’ll just have to make things like this more of a priority.

That being said, I decided to do a little “grassroots” tasting. Chose a country, and with 50 bucks, came home with 4 wines – two reds and two whites.  Chili was the chosen country, and the Chardonnay was the winner of the first tasting. You all know how I feel about Chardonnays.  And having tasted some amazing Chardonnays, I was a bit dubious about this one, to be honest.

BUT, for $17 on the shelf, it’s not a bad little Chardonnay, and I took a chance! The Torreon De Paredes lies in the heart of the Cachapoal Valley in the Rapel district in Chili. And because of the influence of the Andes, most of the grapes do very well with warm days and cool nights.  A medium lemon colour, this Chard was not overly oaked, and had subtle tones of smoky vanilla and ripe bananas and pineapples on the nose. I always find the Chilean whites to have more “tropical” fruits, which I love!  The acidity was medium plus, bordering on high, which seemed a LOT to me for an oaked Chardonnay.  That was a bit off-putting, but the vanilla and bananas hung on through the palate, and the finish was medium. Decent body too, considering the high(er) acidity. I found that this wine got somewhat bitter as it warmed, so best to keep it cold!  And of course, any creamy dishes or creamy cheeses would enhance the flavour and keep the acidity down too! In fact, if I had to choose this as a sipper or enhancer, I’d definitely choose enhancer. It needs food to get the full benefit of food! So, if you’re looking for something good to go with that Chicken Alfredo, any pasta with white sauce, or a white fish such as sole, or even salmon, this Chardonnay just may work for you!  Cheers!

PS.  I had another glass this evening…even better the second day!