Wednesday, June 16, 2010

Dona Paulina Chardonnay 2009

This is the last of my wines from the uh, budget-priced Dona Paulina range from the Wine Society. So far I haven't really enjoyed any of them, and this is no exception.

The problem with these cheaper wines is they don't have varietal character. This could have been anything. It wasn't offensive. It tasted like wine, but what kind of wine? Who knows? If someone handed me a glass of this in a pub I would have struggled - it could have been a Pinot Grigio, a Sauvignon Blanc, a blend, a Chardonnay, etc. It's just generic and boring.

Yes, it's cheap. Yes, it's not totally disgusting. For £2 more you can do much better.

Dona Paulina
Chardonnay 2009
Casablanca Valley, Chile
The Wine Society
£4.75
2/5

3 comments:

  1. Looks like they're trying to trade off the Argentine brand, Dona Paula, who make some very good wines. As a matter of fact, I was surprised at your review as at first I thought it was a Dona Paula wine! Really, even from South America, you have to pay a bit to get a good wine and I for one, don't mind and usually do pay more for something that is drinkable AND enjoyable.

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  2. i must say I expect a better standard from the Wine Society, although this is obviously right at the low end of range. It's got pretty much favourable comments on the WS site though:

    http://www.thewinesociety.com/shop/shop.aspx?section=pd&pd=CE5101

    although when one member says he's ordered another 'crate' you do wonder whether his other tipple is Carling.

    At 13.5% this is a strong white as well, which may affect perception...

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  3. Hi Marc,

    The whole reason I tried this range was because of all the glowing comments on the Wine Society's website. At £5 a bottle it's worth a try. As it turns out, none of them were exactly diamonds in the rough...

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