Varietal: Chardonnay
Region: Virginia – USA
Cost: $17
Tropical fruit flavors with a hint of vanilla and soft oak finish. Â Dry, but not overly oaky. Â Straw coloring that is typical of Chardonnay. Â Pairs well with poultry, seafood, and pasta.
Recommendations: I’ve had Gray Ghost wine before, but over the Labor Day weekend my wife, my parents, and myself made a trip out to visit the vineyard, one of my parents’ favorites. Â The vineyard itself was beautiful, and the staff was amazing (all of which is a post for another time), and after coming home with quite a bit of wine, my wife and I finally opened a bottle the other night to pair with our meal.
Our dinner of pork cutlets with a honey glaze and bacon pesto risotto was a great compliment to the wine (or the other way around). Â The oak of this wine is ever so subtle, and doesn’t mask a bit of acid on the finish, which I was a big fan of and did an excellent job of cutting some of the sweetness from the meal. Â The balance of light fruit flavors made this wine enjoyable long after our meal was gone – a feature I find key to any good wine.
At $17 a bottle it’s a good price for a top quality Chardonnay, especially one that you can pair with a variety of foods (or none at all). Â Definitely worth trying out if you’re a Chardonnay fan.
Thanks for sharing the Gray Ghost Vineyards 2008 Chardonnay tasting notes. It was nice going through your blog.
We’re always happy to hear about a Chardonnay that isn’t too oak infused. How familiar are you with current Virginia wines in relation to other more well known AVA’s?
I do my best to keep up, but there are so many vineyards in Virginia that it can be difficult. Fortunately a lot of local wine shops try to do a good job of stocking different Virginia wines, which makes it easier, and there are lots of wine festivals in the area I live in (Richmond) to help expose me to new vineyards that have sprung up and to new wines from established vineyards.