Drink: Bourgogne Chardonnay vieilles vignes Albert Bichot 2010

I use to think that given the choice, I would never chose a white wine over red. My opinion on this has changed thanks to recent European travels and a vast selection of really affordable white wine options at the SAQ depot. The SAQ has a really useful iPhone app that makes it really easy to select new wines by referencing the online tasting notes/food pairings. You simply scan the bar code and then you can check the flavor profile right there on the spot. This is especially helpful because the SAQ has the tendency to place a blank white label over the tasting notes if the label does not have a French translated description (...don't get me started on this, I think its very unfair to hide useful information because it wasn't translated, it seems petty).

The depot carries a number of wines by the Albert Bichot label. Apart from a lovely Gamay, I have yet to try their red wines, but I have been impressed with their white varieties (Bourgogne Aligoté, Chablis, etc.). It's fun to work my way through their catalog. Our latest taste test was the Bourgogne Chardonnay vieilles vignes Albert Bichot 2010 at 16.90, but with a 15% discount. I would agree with the SAQ notes that the flavour is both fruity and floral; I foound it to be lightly floral and perhaps a bit like stone fruit (apricot, nectarine) and pear. It had a good amount of acidity, not syrupy or having too much of an aftertaste. We served it with cod in a mustard cream sauce which I thought paired well enough but I did think it tasted better once we had a glass on it's own. I might not seek it out at 16.90, especially when there are a number of great white wines at that price point (including the Albert Bichot Bourgogne Aligoté ) but at 15% at the SAQ depot I would definitely consider buying it again. I did like the Albert Bichot Chablis better but it is considerably more expensive.

*Note: I try to photograph my wine bottles with a thumbs up or thumbs down because otherwise I can't remember what I thought of the wine when I finally get around to writing about it. Sometimes I'm smart enough to take a few notes on my iPhone while I'm drinking, but more often than not I have a collection of wine bottle photos and no recollection of whether or not they were any good. Nice hang nails there, Heather!