a chardonnay vs a microbrew?

Um, well, I've found that most Chardonnays with the colour you describe are fat, over oaked and boring. You should aim for a greeny-yellowish complexion, minimal oak and nice acid. Like a Chablis or some of the cooler climate Chardonnays coming out of Australian and New Zealand.

As for beer. The "microbrew" taste you say you like can be done on a "macro" level. It's all about ingredients and attention to detail. Just because big producers got away with selling us crap beer for so long doesn't meen that good ol' microbrew flavour can't be achieved by the dominant beer companies. I remember when "Redback" took off in Fremantle Western Australia, the revolution conquered the whole nation and now some of the big companies are making their own "microbrews".

Marcello

What area are you in? Sounds like it might be Australia. I have such a wine available, but I'm in California - and you probably aren't. E-mail me for particulars if you're interested.

Tom S

I am in Colorado. I only used the color/microbrew comparison in order to try and describe what I was looking for. What I do not want is a chardonnay that is light and "thin" on flavor, but one that is robust and stands up to any red. I'd know it if I tasted it. I guess that is why the description of wines is so colorful.

What is this wine that you have available? Not that I'm interested in buying such a wine; I'm just curious.

Vino To reply, add "x" between letters and numbers of e-mail address.

It's my IPO - so to speak. I've finally gone commercial, after making wines for just family and friends since 1982.

I favor the big, fat, rich, buttery, oaky, take-no-prisoners, stomp-all-over-wimpy-foods style of Chardonnay that they made in California in the 1970s. You know - the ones the wine critics called "overblown" - as though that were a _bad_ thing!

My 2002 Chardonnay is a cuvée from three Santa Barbara County vineyards: crushed, cold soaked overnight, pressed, settled and fermented in 100% new French oak, aged sur lie for 14 months, fined, filtered and bottled this January. It's very nice already, but a year or two in bottle will be an improvement and five to ten isn't out of the question. It's best with rich dishes, like BBQ salmon or fettucine Alfredo. It drinks more like a red wine than a white - and that's *exactly* what I intended!

I'm planning a Spring/Summer release. I haven't set a price yet, but ~$180/cs wholesale is a reasonable estimate.

Tom S Château Burbank

I well remember many of those huge Chardonnays from the 1970s. For all of their initial power, many in this style from Napa did not age well - perhaps the climate was a bit too warm and the grapes lacked acid. However David Bruce made several wines, including Chardonnay, that were as big and full as I have ever tasted. The grapes from the Santa Cruz mountains that Bruce often used gave a very powerful Chardonnay that often lasted well. Selection of grapes from Santa Barbara by Tom may turn out to be a good choice for this style of wine. My favorite current California Chardonnay is one of the several reserves that have been produced by Au Bon Climat from grapes in some of the best vineyards of the area. These wines have much acid when young and require some age for my taste. I have tasted several that have held up for over 10 years. Au Bon Climat reserve Chardonnays are big wines having about the power of a Batard Montrachet, but they are not in the huge style of the 1970s from David Bruce, for example. Good luck, Tom.

Funny that you should mention Bavid Bruce. His 1972 Chardonnay is the first I ever tasted, and it was *spectacular*! That, and a few others like the

It's a pity that David Bruce didn't stick with this style, and I suppose that's one of the reasons I've tried to pick it up and carry it on.

Thanks! I've been lucky with my 2002, but I also put a _lot_ of hard work and long hours into it (not to mention $$$). All I need now is customers so I can keep doing this...

Tom S

Tom,

Do you have location of your winery? And do you have website? I'd be interested in being a customer. Maybe a trip out to you when you release this wine.