Drink This Now - Lesson 4

Un-oaked Bottle: Kendall-Jackson Avant Unoaked Chardonnay

1. Vintage: 2023

2. Type: 100% Chardonnay

3. Region: California

Oaked Bottle: Dark Horse Buttery Chardonnay

1. Vintage: 2023

2. Type: 100% Chardonnay

3. Region: California

Crackers: Kellogg's Club Original (from Costco)

Over Spring Break, I stayed close to Blacksburg but took my taste buds on a journey through the world of oak influence in wine. As part of Lesson 4 from the DTN “Drink This Now!” series, I visited Kroger and, with the help of an associate, selected two contrasting Chardonnays for a side-by-side comparison: one unoaked, and one oaked and buttery, just as the lesson instructed.

Before I dove in, I reviewed the lesson and procedure. The lesson focused on recognizing how oak aging influences a wine's aroma, texture, and flavor—whether it’s adding spice, smoke, or that unmistakable buttery quality. Armed with this knowledge, I opened both bottles, took notes, and tasted them both solo and with crackers.

Setup: I chilled both bottles appropriately, poured a glass of each Chardonnay side by side for my comparison, and I set out crackers and water to cleanse my palate between sips.

Step 1: Tasting the Wine (No Chill, No Food)

Kendall-Jackson Avant Unoaked Chardonnay

Color: Pale gold with slight green highlights.
Bouquet (smell): Super clean and bright. I picked up fresh citrus—lemon zest and green apple—with a light floral edge and no trace of oak.
Taste: Very crisp, with a strong focus on acidity and green fruit (apple, pear, lemon). Dry, zippy, and refreshing.
Body: Light to medium. No creaminess, just sleek and mineral-like.

Dark Horse Buttery Chardonnay

Color: Deeper yellow-gold, richer in appearance.
Bouquet (smell): Vanilla, toasted oak, baked apple, and a hint of caramel. Clearly oak-aged.
Taste: Creamy mouthfeel, buttery texture with notes of butterscotch, ripe apple, and a bit of coconut. Toasty and warm.
Body: Full-bodied, lush, and smooth—definitely richer and rounder.

Step 2: Tasting the Wines Chilled (No Food)

After chilling both bottles for about 45 minutes, I repeated the tasting.

Unoaked (Chilled): The acidity felt even sharper, and the citrus notes really popped. It tasted cleaner and even more refreshing, with the green apple now standing out clearly.

Oaked (Chilled): Chilling muted some of the buttery roundness, making it feel slightly tighter and less expressive. Still creamy, but the oak notes were more restrained—less vanilla, more green apple and spice.

Step 3: Tasting the Wines Chilled (Food Pairings)

With Kendall-Jackson Avant Unoaked Chardonnay:
The Club cracker didn’t alter the wine much. Its saltiness made the acidity in the wine feel slightly more pronounced but didn’t interfere with the fruit flavors. The wine still felt lean and fresh—almost like a palate cleanser. I thought it didn’t clash, but also didn’t reveal new layers in either the wine or the cracker. A safe, clean pairing.

With Dark Horse Buttery Chardonnay:
This pairing was much more dynamic. The cracker’s salt and fat content softened the acidity slightly and made the vanilla and toasty notes in the wine more prominent. The wine tasted creamier and more indulgent after each bite. The texture of the cracker enhanced the buttery feel of the wine, and the two complemented each other well. The wine felt heavier and more complex when paired with food, leaning into its dessert-wine-like richness.

This DTN lesson emphasized how oak can totally shift the personality of a wine made from the same grape.