When Brian Wilson went on an LSD trip in 1965 he probably never realised that he would be about to dream up one of the major songs of the 1960s. The next day he and fellow band member Mike Love finished Wilson's drug haze ditty and the song California Girls was created. In the song, they harmoniously extol the virtues of the world's women but then in the chorus they confess that they "wish they all could be California girls." One can only assume that Wilson and Love wanted the world to be one big beach party with beautiful blonde, toned girl-next-door types in bikinis.
Fast forward forty odd years and the former Mrs Russell Brand, Katy Perry, also sang about California Gurls (note the modern spelling of 'girls', better described as the incorrect spelling of 'girls'). She too pointed out that the sun always shines on the West coast, but the lyrics she sang about would constitute more of a slutty type of beach babe. She claims in her video, whilst writhing around naked in confectionary filled world, that California Gurls are "fresh and fierce' stilletto and short shorts wearing "fit and ready" to have men "squeeze her buns". As I said - slutty.
Which brings me onto American Chardonnay, and like the portrayal of California women in these two hit records, if you were to generalise them, you would find that there are two types of Chardonnay. There are beautiful perfectly created wines and then there are slutty overly made up wines and sadly, the category that a wine falls into is not reflected by the price. You can get wines with precision and poise at cheaper prices and flabby over-oaked wines at the higher end. I tried a dozen Californian Chardonnays recently and found that every one fitted into one of these two camps.
2010 Smoking Loon Chardonnay £10
Bright, clean and smells like a chardonnay should but then a little rubber on the nose. The palate is simple, a touch thin, but pretty well balanced. It is a touch thin, with some alcohol coming through, but it is nice and simple. On the outer edge of the Beach Boys circle. 85pts
2010 Migration Russian River Chardonnay £25
A bit of plasticine coming off the nose, some pear dops as well. Nice oak on the palate with some vanilla pod and pineapple skin. Very well balanced, good fruit a touch of white pepper leading to and a bit of lime on the finish. Again, one for the 1960's group. 88pts
2010 Ridge Estate Chardonnay £38
The aroma is of lovely clean, juicy lemons and limes with some tropical fruit giving some weight to the nose. The palate has some lovely pineapple, cut with some citrus, but isn't as balanced as it could be. A little juvenile really - think of it as a teenager about to discover Pet Sounds, but is still listening to Katy Perry. 83pts (with potential)
2008 Duck Pond Cellars Chardonnay £12
Soft vanilla oak, nice pineapple kin. The palate is well structured, balanced with a bit of pepper and alcohol on the finish. Good Californian Chardonnay, and another Beach Boys wine. 87pts
2009 Schug Carneros Sonoma Coast Chardonnay £24
Bright, fresh proper chardonnay fruit, touch of oak but very subtle. The palate is nicely balanced, a touch of oaky ginger and white pepper coating grapefruit pith. Very tasty and beautifully made. This is again with the legendary American group. 90pts
2008 Flowers Vineyard & Winery Sonoma Coast Chardonnay £40
Elegance, simple oak and some tropical fruit coming through a bright, clean, fuller body with some firm oak. There is a touch of oak tannin as well, but very clean. Proper US Chardonnay and again one for the Wilsons. 89pts
2009 Peter Michael Winery Belle Cote Chardonnay £50
A lot of osk, vanilla and tobaco box coming trough. Pineapple skin comes off the nose as well. The palate is soft, pretty well integrated with some light tropical fruit in a shed load of oak. If you like the Katy Perry style of Chardonnay, this is a good one. I'm just less keen. 86pts
2009 Peter Michael Winery La Carriere Chardonnay £50
Bright melon aromas and then some peach as well before the oak kicks in. The palate is dry with lots of wood, I get the impression that this is trying to be Burgundian and failing. Aggressive on the finish without having any fruit. This is Katy Perry trying to sing Good Vibrations. 76pts
2009 Peter Michael Winery Mon Plaisir Chardonnay £50
Simple oak with some tropical fruit skin on the nose. The palate has more oak, with alcohol coming through in force. Very punchy, but the fruit is nice, if sweet, but it is spoiled a lot by the alcohol. This is like putting Snoop Dog in a song that is aimed at pre-teens... oh wait, that is what Katy Perry did. 82pts
2009 Peter Michael Ma Belle-Fille £60
Softer Californian oak coming through. Subtle, elegant and with some bright passion fruit and pineapple coming out of the glass. The palate is well structured, some good minerality and with some clean, cream and cedar notes. Very tasty, even if it is a Gurl. 90pts
2009 Talley Estate Chardonnay £18
Nice bright fruit, good structure with pineappe and peach aromas with a bit of wood coming through. The palate is clean, well balanced with pear and peach flavours. Oak comes through in the end of the palate with a touch of heat. Nice and in the Beach Boy camp. 87pts
2009 Talley Olivers Vineyard Chardonnay £20
Oak comes through with bit of light fruit playing second fiddle. Good balance of alcohol, lot of clean crisp fruit and a touch high acid on the finish leaving you a bit underwhelmed. Like listening to a Katy Perry record, it sounds the same as the one before it and you lose interest quickly. 87pts
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