The StoryThe William Wright Monterey Chardonnay 2018 is a $7.99 ALDI wine produced for them by Scheid Vineyards in Greenfield, California (Monterey County). It seems that if you see a Monterey County wine from ALDI there is a good chance Scheid Vineyards produced it.Scheid Family Wines has been in business since 1972 and have 12 estate vineyards. They produce a wide variety of wines from expensive single-vineyard wines to highly affordable wines sold in grocery stores. In doing a quick check of the CWF archives I found a good number of Monterey County wines produced in Greenfield, California.Virtual all those wines received positive reviews with terms like bang-for-the-buck and hits above its price tag often used. Which bodes well for the William Wright Monterey Chardonnay 2018. Often wines that are sold exclusively through a store chain attempt to hide their origin.Scheid Family Wines has William Wright wines featured on their webpage complete with tasting notes and professional bottle shots. That means they stand behind their wine and that is a good detail for a $7.99 ALDI wine.The William Wright Chardonnay is sourced from Scheid estate vineyards (they have 12) which again is a positive detail for a $7.99 wine. The tasting notes say this Chardonnay was aged “on” French oak.What exactly does “aged on French oak” mean? Wine is typically aged “in” oak barrels. Are barrels used? The tasting notes are vague, but at less than eight bucks saving some production money with “other” forms of oak aging is understandable and to be expected.So, this a $7.99 estate wine sourced from a single AVA and produced by a well-respected winery. You really can not ask for more than that from wine in this price range. The alcohol content is 13.5%.William Wright Monterey Chardonnay 2018 Tasting NotesThe color reminds me of extra virgin olive oil. The nose is clean and bright, there is lemon, ripe green apple, banana, pink lemonade, peach, pear, a little vanilla, and a touch of spice. This is a crisp, bright Chardonnay with well-balanced acidity.It tastes of a mix of melon, lemon, apple and pear, followed by creamy vanilla, and light oak spice.The mid-palate is tame compared to the body of the wine but adds tart tangerine and lime. The acidity lets the flavors unfold and will get you reaching for another sip.The SummaryIt is getting harder to procure wine during the lockdown. In Chicago, they are asking us to not go to the grocery store this week and next, so hitting a wine shopman be difficult.Being able to go to ALDI for supplies and to do double duty and get a wine that is worth drinking is a blessing.The William Wright Monterey Chardonnay 2018 is the perfect wine for rewatching The Wire for free on HBO during the lockdown. Just remember to get 2 (or more) because safely going to the store to get more may be difficult.
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