A Penfolds Australian Chardonnay

Let's try an inexpensive Chardonnay from the maker of Australia's greatest wine...

Penfolds Koonunga Hill Chardonnay

We have been doing a lot of Australian wines recently. Today’s offering comes from yet another huge Australian wine company founded by a young British doctor over 150 years ago. Dr. Penfold’s started by planting vine cuttings from the south of France at a modest stone cottage on the outskirts of Adelaide in South Australia. The cottage was called The Grange. Penfolds Grange wine is anything but modest; it is considered Australia’s finest wine. At well over $500 a bottle I won’t be reviewing it here or in my upscale wine column. Penfolds has been making this particular South Australian Chardonnay since 1976. Today’s companion wine is a Chardonnay from one of the finest wine areas of Australia.

OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we taste and review are purchased at the full retail price.

Wine Reviewed
Penfolds Koonunga Hill Chardonnay 2007 13.5% alcohol about $10

Let’s start by quoting the marketing materials. Tasting Note: Pale lemon gold color; tropical fruit, spicy oak and vanilla aromas; mouth filling flavor, long crisp spicy finish. Serving Suggestion: Ham with a honey mustard glaze; chicken dishes. And now for my review.

I didn’t even try to cut open the twist cap. It twisted off nicely – with pliers. At the first sips this wine was sweet, spicy, and oaky. I immediately asked myself, will there be too much oak? The initial meal was a commercial chicken pot pie. This Chardonnay was nicely acidic with pleasant sweetness and tropical fruit. I added Louisiana cayenne pepper sauce, which brought out the oak.

My next meal was a boxed eggplant parmiagiana. The wine displayed refreshing lemon acidity. At first there was no oak, but then IT made an appearance. Dessert was a frozen custard pie containing wild blueberries and a buttery crust. The Chardonnay’s acidity was gone and I tasted some smoke.

My final meal had many components. I started with vegetable pancakes (potatoes, string beans, onions, and more). The wine was lemony with refreshing acidity and a touch of sweetness. When I doused the pancakes with a mild tomato, white corn, and black bean salsa, the wine’s acidity became subtler. When this Chardonnay faced homemade roasted eggplant brimming with garlic, it was gutted and only a little lemon remained. Next came the tomatoey barbecued chicken wings. The wine wasn’t forceful but there was some taste of apples. The meal’s final element was potatoes roasted in chicken fat. The Chardonnay had nice grease cutting acidity and a touch of sweetness.

The first cheese was a bland brick cheese. The wine was sweetish and pleasantly acidic. I got burnt caramel in the background. This was a fine combo. With a Muenster, this wine was long, round, and well balanced.

Final verdict. I would not buy this wine again, even at the Internet price of $10 much less the exorbitant price that I had to pay. On the upside it went well with the not very good cheeses. Unfortunately any money saved by not buying this wine again won’t help much towards tasting a Penfolds Grange. Check out the company’s website for bragging rights about this undoubtedly spectacular wine. Somehow the site forgot to mention that Max Schubert, Penfold’s chief winemaker, was given formal orders to cease and desist producing Penfold’s Grange way back when.

Access the companion wine A Margaret River Australia Chardonnay

About the Author

Levi Reiss has authored or co-authored ten books on computers and the Internet, but to be honest, he would rather just drink fine Italian or other wine, accompanied by the right foods. He teaches classes in computers at an Ontario French-language community college. His wine websites include
www.theworldwidewine.com    and    http://www.wineinyourdiet.com

Visit his website devoted to italian travel www.travelitalytravel.com

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