Wildhurst 2005 Chardonnay Reserve

I have been craving a rich, buttery Chardonnay recently but I haven't had much experience with the varietal, and I know a lot of critics have complained that many bottles are overwrought with heavy oak flavors.

I went to BevMo this weekend to take advantage of their 5 cent sale (buy one bottle full price, get a second one for 5 cents), and after stocking up on some highly rated Aussie Shiraz wines (Henry's Drive Dead Letter Shiraz was my main target -- the Wall Street Journal's wine columnists said it was the best of their tasting of Australian Shiraz priced $20-$50) I decided to take a gander down the Chardonnay isle.

Big mistake. I got lost in a sea of bottles. The problem with a large wine shop such as BevMo is also what makes it appealing -- the sheer size of their offerings. Being a large company allows them to offer amazing deals on some bottles, but if you don't go in with a plan, you can drive yourself mad trying to choose what to get.

After passing through the Chard isle several times, I picked out the Wildhurst 2005 Chardonnay Reserve. I paid $12.99, but got a second bottle for 5 cents, so basically I paid half that per bottle.

I actually visited Wildhurst's tasting room last summer in Kelseyville, Lake County, and ended up buying a Zinfandel that I really enjoyed, so I thought I'd stick with the winery that I knew rather than getting something random.

On the nose I found pears, and gamy scents. On the attack, I got pears, peaches, wet stone and lemon. Some clover spice on the finish and a little petrol.

I was a little disappointed with this wine. It's not a bad wine, it's just not what I was looking for. Didn't have the stature I was seeking.