Hello everybody and welcome to Wine Library TV. I am your host Gary Vaynercuk and this my friends is the thunder show AKA the internet’s greatest invention of all time. If Gordon could say he invented it, I could say I’m greatest. So I’m really excited for a few reasons. But first and foremost, because Lizzie and I are taking a vacation because we are working on some systems in here because life is good, everybody is healthy, Lizzie and I have a baby on the way. Just, things are good, feeling good but missing the Vayniacs quite a bit. I mean, I’ve been out of rhythm a little bit in January, probably my most unrhythmed year. So it’s good to be back with you guys. Superbowl is coming up. Good stuff and I really figured something out. Some of you hardcore Vayniacs know that I’ve taken the flip camera on the road. We did a couple of videos where I did Wine List. Big move this year. I’m doing a lot of traveling and a lot of speaking for the whole business part of my life, you know, the GaryVaynerchuk.com videos. Have you been to Gary Vaynerchuk.com? Mott, link that up. So I’m excited about that. I’m really looking forward to bring the flip cam and doing a lot of unique episodes with you guys. I think we can do a lot of cool stuff, we get into like stores, that’s going to go over. We can definitely analyze lists. I’m going to definitely taste wine. I don’t know, I think there’s going to be a lot of fun in the next couple of months. Plus, I’ve got a lot of great guests, some heavyweights coming. Big open house again in the Spring with a major heavyweight celebrity coming. We’re going to kill it, Mott. We’re going to crush the first one. The second one was kind of lame. The third one is going to kill. It’s kind of Wrestlemania.
And, we are going to focus on the Vino, expanding palates, trying different things. We’re going to do short shows and long shows. Sorry about this. I’ll explain to you why I had to do this. I’m really into this show. I didn’t want these wines to go away. We like nothing of any of them. And other than that, Monday show. If you don’t follow me on Twitter, you didn’t know about this so I wanted to wait until I got back on the air. Monday show for next week, you the audience pick the show. I’m going to tape it on Saturday, just so you know. Mott, link up the Wine Library Tv Fan Page on Facebook. Link that up. And in there, we’re going to link up two things, the actual fan page and where I created a conversation about what shows should I do. I’m going to pick one person from Facebook to do it. So I hope you guys do that.
Let’s focus on the Vino at hand. We are looking at chardonnay. Now chardonnay is pretty funny, right? I disown it, other people disown. There are so many people who drink chardonnay, we are just trying to get you to try new things. I know a lot of you drink the KJ’s. But when you start walking up the ladder or premium, it started to come to my attention that chardonnay may be a value play. All three of these wines are scored 93 points. 93 spectator, 93 parker, 93 spectator. 60 bones on the White burg. I wouldn’t say that that’s a value play. 34 and 30, not a value play. But now, I’m getting into the P. Diddy kind of like Jay Z blinged out kind of level. Or if you’re working your face off and you could afford these kinds of wines, God bless you. I don’t know, 30 to 50 bucks. I’m starting to feel like chardonnay might be converting and creating better opportunities. There is a lot of crap out there so it’s kind of hard for me to make that kind of broad statement. But, there has been a push in my opinion on price on so many wines like the Pop, Priorat, Barossa Shiraz that are all coming down. And chardonnay is of high quality. I have kind of stayed in the same range.
You know what, I just wanted to shoulder that wines really stepped up. France, America, Australia—battling it out to see who really brings the thunder, and 93 point level head to head chardonnay throwdown. So we’re going to taste these wines and I’m really excited about it.
Okay. The first of the day, the most expensive but I think it might not be the oakiest and so that’s why starting with a 2005. A big time vintage in burgundy. This is Louis Lator Chassagne Montrachet. It comes from a single vineyard, premier cru vineyard of Morgeots, US$60, 93 points wine spectator. I decided to use the Louis Lator because I think this would be more widely available out there if you guys want to replicate this. Also, I should mention, when are the Oscars Mott? Do you have any idea?
I think in February?
I think so too. We’re definitely doing an Oscars secret pack. I’ve got like 40 academy award secret pack questions. I guess a lot of people want to throw down parties. So I’ll try to tape that episode as well. I’m going to look at the date of the Oscars.
Let’s give way into the color. I mean, it’s gorgeous. Golden in color. It’s just beautiful. I hope you’re enjoying that as much as I am. I think Montrachet is a very interesting place in the world. Maybe it doesn’t get as much famous as Puligny-Montrachet. But still nonetheless, a place where tremendous wine is coming out of and more and more red wine. We’re down now to about 60-40 in Chassagne of white over red. About 60% of the wine coming out of there which is about 2 million bottles. So, it is small because there’s only 850 acres in size which is pretty small. I mean, somebody right now in Nebraska are living in a farm bigger than that. You got to pay attention Mott, it’s a small place. 100% chardonnay, and just a very interesting place that I think is growing really interesting wines. You can drink a lot of Chassagne Montrachet. I’m excited about trying this wine. I haven’t a Louis Lator in a while. So, let’s see what happens here. There are about 900, right? 900 cases produced this wine. Let’s give this wine a sniffy sniff. You got a nice wood component coming through here. I get a little pineapple juice on the back end. I also get a little kiwi fruit which I’m liking quite a bit. I’m also picking up little squints. You know Mott, you know the squints, when you get the cheese there are squints, maybe some of the gourmet downstairs. I like it. I actually get a lot of squints. A little apricot on the back and it’s opening up quite nicely. It’s always good to whirly whirl when you sniffy sniff.
Definitely not over oaked lot a lot of its cousins, maybe from California or Australia. I’m dying to see what happens here. Good sharp acid. If you’re a fan of acidic wines, this wine has a nice balanced acid. I can give it a little too much because I’m yearning a little bit for that creaminess and that wheat that we all love so much in white burgundy. There is to me 7:38, just a hair. There is pretty golden apple flavors driving this wine. I also get a little bit of true pear juice, not fake, which I like quite a bit. Let me give it one more shot. I’d be wrong not to mention that it’s medium-bodied wine that lacks a little bit of depth to the mid palate, believe it or not. It finishes kind of okay. I don’t know. I mean this is really underwhelming. You know being somebody who is a big fan of white burgundy and who traditionally disses on chardonnays that are over oaked, this is a time where—you know, I’ve been noticing this by the way. A little sign though. You’re palates love change. Not me, not any and nobody should dictate what you like and not even your own mindset if that makes any sense. You think your graduating towards more interesting wines, you think it’s important to like certain wines than other wine experts, whatever that means. Sorry Mott. And then you start forcing yourself to liking those kinds of wines. I think it’s a mistake. As a matter of fact, me who absolutely hates…
The oak monster is finding himself. Good old Gary V finding himself—oh! Third person, sorry—finding himself towards up a little bit. And so this, I would have liked a little creaminess. Show me a little crumb roulette, give me a little buttered popcorn. Not doing it, and because of that, it makes me say, should I really pay 60 bones for this when I can go to the Chubli which is also 100% chardonnay from Burgundy and pay $25 to $32 for wines that taste like this, and that’s what basically went through my mind. In the real X ray of my brain, I said to myself, I would not buy this for 60 bones, I’ll buy a 35-dollar Pinsone Chubli and be much happier. I’m going to score this wine 90 points. Only this time, there are definitely great virtues. I love the acid. It’s a complete wine. It’s not super disjointed, a little hull on the mid palate. Though I like this wine. 60 bones, people. 2005, I would have been upset. 2009, I’m pissed. Let’s move on.
Dehlinger, unfiltered. They want you to know that it’s unfiltered. 2006 Dehlinger Russian river chardonnay. This one rolls in US$34, 93 points Robert Parker, mainly produced from old Wente clones which is a really sought after clone for chardonnay in California, old school. Dehlinger is one of the real premier chardonnay producers but have really been hot—let me rephrase that. Have not really been hot in the last five to seven years. They’re so small. They’re so allocate they’ve gone so much to the restaurant part of business that you don’t see at retail often. But in its day, I mean this was the rubik’s cube pitfall. I mean, this rolled deep. I mean, jelly shoes. I mean, this was the shiz of chardonnay and wish to have customers especially in the mid 90’s. It’s really rolling. And as with this wine, totally unfiltered, so you can see, it’s a little bit cloudy. Do you see that? You know what, give me another glass if you don’t mind. Speaking of hardcore. Let’s see if we can do something here. This is the Latore, see if we can kind of—let’s see how it looks in there for them. Try to see it. It’s probably pretty hard. I mean you can see, it’s a little—what if you go straight down like this. A little tough to make it out. But unfiltered, it gives it a little bit more of a cloudy edge to it. Let’s give it a sniffy sniff.
Here comes the burnt wood. I mean, tons of nuances with a little bit of butter and caramel action. Wow! This is really smoky. This really is quite smoky, quite woody. I mean, very woodchip like. You know, just enormous amounts right in comparison. Yes, very oaky. If you like that burnt wood, oak, buttered kind of style, Dehlinger is definitely delivering it on the nose. Let’s give it a whirl. Good richness, great complexity. I like the really upfront apple fruit that this is delivering as well and it’s coated with little butter and with little oak and a little crump fresh. And this is making my mouth salivary. It just brings a little bit of a nice complexity to it. I like the dried apricot flavors that I feel in the transition of the mid palate which is strong and form segwaying nicely in the finish. But right before you get to the finish which is very—once it gets too buttered out, you get a nice balance of wood and oak and apples and a little bit of apricots, there is this gorgeous kind of a peachiness like a blend, just like really interesting kind of a—pretty good. Good sharp finish. It’s really yearning for some cheese now and/or Captain Crunch. That’s for another show. Good balance, good richness, a little bit oakier. I like it slightly more than I like the Montrachet because I think of yearning towards that style a little bit more, probably a year ago if I did WLTV, I would have went the other way. You know, I’m going to go 91. I think that Parker overrated it with 93 points. I was expecting a lot more. Parker with 93 is high for Kelly Chard. But this is well made and also has a hint of quints which I like on the back end actually right now. This quint is catching me a little bit today. Buttered, you know, very oaky, definitely in that style, but not over the top gabby disgusting. Let’s move on.
Shaw and Smith M3 Chardonnay from Adelaide Hills which is one of the great places in the world to make chardonnay, 2007, 93 points wine spectator, US$30, 750 cases made of this lovely little chardonnay. Screw top for a 30-dollar wine. It makes me excited. Let’s give it a sniffy sniff. Now, this is a lot less oakey than I thought on the nose. A lot of Australian wines go over the top and this is a little bit more fresh. Almost like—I felt like I smelled the ocean. A nice rum on a beach and the ocean coming through on the nose. Pretty good subtle—I’m getting a little subtle oak now. Let me just see something here. The grapes were hand picked and a whole bunch is pressed prior to the barrel fermentation. It matured in French oak for ten months. Alright, let’s see what’s going on here. Just classic almonds. I’m getting a lot of almond kind of flavor like an almond paste on the nose as well which I like. Again, apples are prominent here too. If you’re an apple fan, you got to look at chardonnays. Let’s give it a whirl.
Now this is impressive. I really preconceive notions. I tend to get crazy about it. 93 spectator Australian Chardonnays, I always think it’s way too oaky, but this has a great balance of maybe what both of these bring to the table. It finds that middle spot which I like so much, good acid which I’m looking for in white wines. Great balance, good back end, buttered almonds and nuts, great nuts. I got some nuts in my mouth and that’s okay because I’m really enjoying the balance of the structure of this wine. This would go amazing. And now, look what’s happening. I’m sorry, I’ll finish my thought. Amazing with lobster and a variety of salads. But now as I’m talking to you, it’s almost like an orchid opening up or maybe a cabbage patch kid popping out of these buttered popcorn classic oaky flavors. But it’s so till end. It’s wild with how they did that. Let me give it one more shot. I like this chardonnay away. Kudos to Shaw and Smith. Great balance. It’s really what I look for in burgundy with a little hint of Australian sunshine. This is an extremely well-made chardonnay. I think the spectator nailed this side of the park. I’m going to go 93 points as well. I think there’s a bargain of a wine of 30 bones.
Great wine. Awesome way to end it. And Australia wins the throwdown. You didn’t think about that, Mott. Australia came out swinging and it didn’t care. Great stuff.
Question of the day. Don’t forget to put in your thoughts for Monday show in the facebook fan page. And other than that, things are good. Things are real good. Thank you so much for supporting the thunder show. And Saturday, and PR listeners, Saturday, weekend edition with Scott Simon. I’ll be on. Please tune in and pass it onto all your friends. We did a really, really fun episode. And the question of the day, what is your favorite premium chardonnay that you’ve ever put directly in you mouth?
You with a little bit of me, we are changing the wine world.
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