Oldenburg Chardonnay

Oldenburg Vineyards 
Chardonnay 
2021
Stellenbosch 

I used to write off Chardonnay as an old lady wine. Not because I thought it the go-to for the coiffed and chunkily bejewelled, but because it’s what I imagined an old lady would taste like if you marinaded her in butter for a few weeks, allowing her the odd butterscotch sweetie for sustenance from the depths of her linty handbag. It was Patty and Selma from The Simpsons in wine form. Cigarette included. 

And then came the Oldenburg Chardonnay. 

With a parting of the clouds, this Chardonnay made me see the proverbial light. Like watching a ’50s Vegas burlesque dancer ringed by perfectly choreographed feather-fanned chorus girls, I was hooked. With gossamer delicacy the Oldenburg Chardonnay swan-dives down the tongue and into the heart. Grapefruit bitterness and butterscotch (because, hey, Chardonnay) swirls in an almost peach syrup viscosity, tinged with a herbal edge and smokey finish. It’s the kind of wine that makes me wish I owned a blue feathered dressing gown and ordered dirty martinis.  

Pair with: Over the top dinner parties where you’ve cooked things with all the curlicued names. Salade Niçoise! Soufflé! Crème brûlée! Will you be debuting a new found love for French cigarettes? Possibly. Will you exude the confidence of a blue feathered dressing gown owner? Most definitely.