by Andrew Chalk
The 2013 Illuminate Chardonnay, North Coast, California is a wine that reinforces your confidence that pleasant, varietally correct, Chardonnay can be made for less than $10. In a sector overloaded with industrial-tasting monstrosities the Illuminate Chardonnay displays fresh fruit aromas of pear and melon, bold flavors of melon, pear and guava framed by bright acid and a more refined phenolic grip than you would expect in a wine at this price. All of this leads through to an enjoyable soft finish.
Quaff after a hard day at work or serve with any of the wide variety of food that Chardonnay has been justly associated with. That includes chicken or turkey (hot and roasted or cold), pasta with cream sauce, or white-fleshed fish like T.J.’s excellent Australian barramundi.
It is a wine that will respect your bank account and can be found at Goody Goody.
Disclosure and procedures: Some wines sent by vendor(s) at no cost to reviewer. If a local reseller is named after a price quote is the one who, on wine-searcher.com, had the lowest price. Wines sent by vendors may not be reviewed and will not be returned.
Hate to be “negative Nancy” here but I just checked with Goody Goody and I had them do a search chain wide for this wine and no one has it….
Sad because I was looking for something to “quaff down” after the day Ive been having!