2014 Bonterra Chardonnay Mendocino
This is one of the better-tasting inexpensive Chardonnay wines you will find on the wine shelves. The Safeway and other supermarket stores carry the Bonterra Chardonnay for around $10. The Safeway has had the best deal in town on the Bonterra. The price at the Safeway is currently just under $10. Two weeks ago at the Safeway, it was $8.09 for the six-pack price, mix-or-match wines. Why the price increase?
The Bonterra Winery is owned by Concho Y Toro, one of the largest Chilean wineries. Concho Y Toro purchased the Bonterra and Fetzer label in 2011. The winery is in Mendocino County in Hopland, CA. All the grapes for the Bonterra Chardonnay and its other wines are organically grown. 70% of Chardonnay grapes are fermented in French and American oak and the rest in stainless steel tanks. The average price for the Bonterra Chardonnay is $13. Buy it for around $10, and it is a solid value.
My Tasting Notes – 2014 Bonterra Chardonnay – 88 Points
- The Bonterra smells and tastes like a Chardonnay
- Light on the oak, big on the fruitiness of Chardonnay
- On the crispy side, no butter and no creamy texture
- More for the lighter style of Chardonnay drinker
Food pairing with the 2014 Bonterra Chardonnay
- Cheese
- Fried Calamari
- Caesar salad with chicken
- Chicken or turkey sandwich
- Roast chicken
- Petrale Sole
If you are an oaky and buttery Chardonnay drinker, the Bonterra Chardonnay is probably not the best choice. Vintage Wine Taster Bruce has a suggestion. It is by Cameron Hughes, the 2013 Cam Collection Monterey County Chardonnay. Bruce and his wife Joanne are huge fans of this type of Chardonnay. Bruce was reportedly seen carting out 2 cases of the Cam Collection Monterey Chardonnay. “It has butter, it has oak and good solid Chardonnay characteristics.” It sells at the Safeway for about $12 a bottle.
Bordeaux Report
Janelle and I are in Bordeaux for 6 days. We are lodging in the city of Bordeaux and there are many exquisite wine shops featuring the wines of Bordeaux. The one thing I like, each store has a collection of inexpensive Bordeaux wines on display. There are many to choose from that have been selected by the proprietor. I chose a Bel Air 2012 Haut-Medoc for 11 Euros. Nice! We are also enjoying White Bordeaux wines, bone dry and mostly made from Sauvignon Blanc.
Bordeaux wine by the glass
Lucky you! We’re in Tasmania for 2 weeks, drinking our way thru their excellent wines before another 2 weeks in Australia. No strict State Liquor Stores like in Scandinavia last month. We’ve been a bit sluggy so haven’t stopped at the plentiful wineries but that will change today.
Enjoy your trip
Patti & Linda