WTN: Vergelegen Chardonnay 2005

[Mark Kogos]

Vergelegen Chardonnay 2005 Very, very subtle bouquet though what I did manage to pick up was quite buttery. On the palate I got qunice, green apples and vanilla at the back. In many ways it tasted more like Rousanne than Chardonnay and overall was strangely disappointing. My wife summed it up best when she was (a) surprised when I told her it was a chardonnay and then (b) told me it tasted like a cheap bad chardonnay except it didn't have that nasty after taste you get with bad chardonnay which meant it was supposed to be a good chardonnay. Overall I found the fruit was vaguely hollow such that the wine lacked depth and complexity. As this is the first Vergelegen I have tried, I wonder if it has gone into some form of hole and may reemerge again in a couple of years. 87/100

[Jenise]

What an odd experience. It does sound rather like a wine in a dormant phase, but I wouldn't have predicted that with a four year old chardonnay. Did you have any left to leave for another day and a retaste?

[Mark Kogos]

Jenise, you clearly have not yet been to our humble abode. With a 2 and 4 year old, some nights I literally have to fight my way to bottle after my poor wife has spend an entire day with both terrors.

[Bob Hower]

So why did you give it 87 points? It sounds like a sub 80 point wine from your description.

[Mark Kogos]

So why did you give it 87 points? It sounds like a sub 80 point wine from your description.

Good question. I was very tempted. Trouble was, as this was the first bottle of Vergelegen I have tried, I really don't know if it has just shut down or is just poorly made. I could see the underlying structure and yet could not find the fruit. In hindsight I probably should have gone mid to low 80s. I just keep wondering if it might flower with time.

My favourite SA chardonnay without doubt is the Ataxaria. This I can drink by the pallet. This wine has superb structure, great length and pristine fruit. If you see it, it really should be a must buy.