Radius Chardonnay: wine that won't break the bank

I’m back with another wine! It’s Friday, after all!

Today’s wine is (again) a white wine, but it’s a bit of a departure from the Sauvignon Blancs I’ve been sipping on recently. I’m talking about the Radius 2011 Chardonnay. It is 100% Chardonnay from Washington state.

I’ll be completely honest: sometimes Chardonnay scares me. I won’t blindly order a glass without knowing more about the potential flavor profile. I’m not a huge fan of oak or buttery flavor in my wine: just a taste preference of mine! And that is what surprised me about this wine: it actually has flavors of toasted oak, yet I still found myself sipping a second glass. It has rich flavors (think apples, almonds, and spice), but a clean finish, which is what I think I liked most about it. The oak notes (to me) were subtle enough to make them pleasant even to my palate. I was very surprised (in a good way) by how much I enjoyed this wine. Would it be my first pick in the future? Probably not, but I think it was nice to switch things up a bit!

You can pick up a bottle of Radius 2011 Chardonnay at Total Wine for $10.99 – not a bad price!