Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/46939
representing a new wave of wine-drinking customers who "want something lighter with less oak—people are coming in asking for unoaked Chardonnay," something seldom seen just four or five years ago. As a wine, the currently released Oyster Bay 2010 Marlborough Chardonnay ($14) is a bonafide dandy: straw gold tinged, gushing peaches, apple and pineapple, and a silken fine, crisply balanced medium body that pushes up the pert fruit while finishing completely dry, with a neat, little lemon drop finish. It is not 100% unoaked—the Oyster Bay formula calls for 50/50 fermentation in French barrique and stainless steel tanks, both with lees stirring to soften mouthfeel—but in the final analysis, the actual taste of oak is practically nil. The barrel regimen is essentially a means of adding texture to the inherently bright, clean fruit of New Zealand–grown Chardonnay. According to English, "The customers are loving the Oyster Bay because it is like a French style—the oak is there, but only as a backdrop to the fruit. But at the same time, it is not an in-your-face fruitiness like you get in Australia and most of California. It's a cool-climate style, with more acidity and lemony apple than the tropical fruitiness you get in warmer climate Chardonnay." To be fair, the Oyster Bay Chardonnay differs from the French unoaked Chardonnays of the Chablis appellation, which are defined by a flowing minerality that eschews fruitiness the way New World unoaked Chardonnays eschew the taste of wood. Instead, the Oyster Bay version makes a virtue of varietal character—as well it should, since it's grown in Marlborough, not Chablis. The recent commitment of some prestige California Chardonnay producers to the 100% unoaked style is significant. For instance, there were 20,000 cases of apple/ citrusy, crisp and pungent Chamisal 2010 Central Coast Stainless Chardonnay ($18) produced, and winemaker Fintan Jani Feiereisel, owner/manager of 545 North Bar and Grill, outside of Chicago. Jim English, wine buyer for Vintage Grape Wine & Spirits in New York City. du Fresne tells us, "It's been paying off. We get an orange blossom fragrance in our plantings that the Stainless shows off, and people find that very appealing." Over the past half-dozen years Mer Soleil has steadily grown its unoaked Chardonnay program: The Mer Soleil 2010 Santa Lucia Highlands Silver Chardonnay ($24) is bone-dry yet lavishly fruited with honeyed apple, lemon and pineapple. Moreover, it comes packaged like a reserve bottling, in a stunning, silver-colored ceramic bottle. For the on-premise industry, the new taste for minimal- or zero-oak-style Chardonnay has been positive because it finally complements what the restaurant business is all about: enhancing the dining experience on a sensory level. Tim Whitlock, Senior VP of Operations for the immensely popu- lar Oceanaire Seafood Room restaurants, carries about 300 selections on his bottle list and more than 30 wines by the glass; but just about his most reliable, and biggest-selling, selection is the Oyster Bay Chardonnay. Whitlock tells us, "Being a seafood restaurant, it's fantastic to have a wine that tastes so good with seafood, especially the oysters and shellfish on our raw bar. It has a clean line and flavor profile that makes it great for the food and for guests, and also for our staff. You gotta love a wine that over- delivers on its price [Oceanaire sells Oyster Bay Chardonnay for $9 per glass and $41 per bottle] and always gets you a second or third order, either by the glass or bottle." Oyster Bay Chardonnay has been on the glass list at 545 North Bar & Grill, in Libertyville just north of Chicago, for going on three years. According to owner/manager Jani Feiereisel, "it would be foolish to take it off the list because it sells so well." At $8 per glass and $32 per bottle, the Oyster Bay is a value item at 545 North, but according to Feiereisel, "it took off when people started asking for a Chardonnay that isn't too heavy or buttery or oaky. Now they come in asking for it by name, which is why it's become a permanent part of our restaurant." If this is any indication, subtly oaked Chardonnay, displaying elegant varietal fruit character is undoubtedly here to stay. november 201 1 / the tasting panel / 59 PHOTO: ERICA GANNETT PHOTO: DOUG YOUNG