The 2011 Chill Out Chardonnay is sourced from more than one grape growing AVA in California. There is no mention of the Chill Out Chardonnay brand on the internet. The back label shows it was produced in Ripon & Livermore, California, which usually means this is one the The Wine Groups labels, they have Concannon, Mogen David, Flipflop, Cupcake and a whole host of others, but Chill Out is not listed on their website. My guess is that Chill Out is a private brand, I picked it up a Jewel Foods for $5.49. The back label mentions sweet vanilla as a tasting note, so this Chardonnay received some sort of oak aging. A vintage designated, oak seasoned California Chardonnay for under $5.50 is a pretty good price. The alcohol content is 12.5%.
The color is a pale butter yellow, from some angles it looks almost clear. The nose is apple, pear, dried apricot, orange blossom honey and a light floral edge. Make sure this Chardonnay is well chilled, you get a blast of too tart acidity when warm. It tastes of tart apple, grapefruit and lemon, a little pineapple, a very soft slap of minerality and a late hit of butter just before the finish. The finish starts off strong, but quickly fades.
The 2011 Chill Out Chardonnay is not the most balanced Chardonnay around, but it is still very drinkable with a nice array of fruit and citrus flavors. The minerality and the butter were an added bonus for a $5.49 wine. The Chill Out Chard is not a bad choice on a tuesday night, when you have to stop at the market and don’t want to make an additional pit stop at the wine shop.
