Varietal: 100% Chardonnay
Region: California
Cost: $7 (SRP)
Winemaker’s Notes: Medium-bodied Chardonnay with pineapple, soft vanilla and a long lingering finish with aromas of creamy, toasted oak that pairs well with Neapolitan pizza, mac & cheese, or chicken Caesar salad.
My Review: If you’ve been reading here long enough you know that I’ve been receiving samples of FlipFlop wines for a few months and have been fairly impressed with them. They aren’t the fanciest wines, but they are a decent value and since there’s charity involved it makes it worth picking up at least one bottle just for that. Fortunately, my most recent bottle, the 2009 FlipFlop Chardonnay, not only confirmed this opinion, but made me think that buyers might be pulling one over on FlipFlop with the value they’re getting.
When I first got the bottle I was expecting a passable, but honestly fairly basic and straight-forward stainless steel Chardonnay. Upon opening the wine I was disabused of this idea. In the glass the wine was a more golden color than I was expecting, and the nose had notes of toast that I associate with an oaked wine.
On the palate I got pineapple, but the finish had oak and toast. The wine was definitely medium-bodied, with a robustness that I wasn’t expecting, but was welcome and still didn’t overwhelm the lobster ravioli in cream sauce my wife and I paired the wine with.
For the price this is definitely a wine to pick up, and I’ve even started seeing it in my local grocery stores. It’s a great price for a wine that is at worst average for the price, and is better than some “table” Chardonnay’s I’ve had for more money.
