Louis Jadot Chardonnay Bourgogne 2003

Happy Saturday all, I hope everyone has some exciting way to have some fun this weekend.  The weather in Northern California seems to be turning a bit back to normal, with high temps just around the corner.  Good for the grapes, bad for those like me who are lacking a cool sea breeze.  Anyway, I hope we are all taking my advice and trying something new and expanding our palates.  Here is a good idea, get a bottle you normally drink and enjoy and try it against the same varietal/blend from a completely different area in the world.  How about a California Chardonnay versus, hmmmm, how about a Louis Jadot Chardonnay Bourgogne.  You should be able to find a current vintage of this bottling at your local Safeway, so it's very accessable.
Jadot is one of the biggest negociant/producers in all of Burgundy, and for the value both Louis Jadot and Louis Latour will deliver quality.  This bottling is the draught year of 2003, so this will show in the bottling.  Chardonnay are sourced from all throughout Burgundy for this bottling, which I like because it really shows a standard base to measure more precise sourcings for white burgundy ( like say a Mersault from that region specific in Cote Beaune). 

The wine appears to be daybright still with a light golden color which fades a bit to pale straw near the rim.  Medium concentration of color with a noticable meniscus at the rim.  No sediment is evident and the legs on the glass are fairly heavy telling me possibly a higher alcohol wine=hot vintage.
The nose is spot on White Burgundy from the heart of Beaune, and I love it.  Notice the difference from a California Chardonnay which is usually fruit forward, the Jadot is all about the off fruit characters.  Lots of noticable limestone minerality and white flowers, I do find bruised yellow apples as well for the fruit component.  Also should be noted that I do notice some Brett, or Brettanomyces, a bacteria that cand grow in the cellar areas in wineries.  Iti is usually noticable by a musky-barnyardy essence.  It is often argued whether it is a good or bad thing, and most who like the old world Burgundian style for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir will argue for a nuance of it in their wines.  That's my stance on it, pleasurable when balanced.  There is definte signs of both some oak maturation as well as maleolactic fermentation.
The palate definitely confirms the aromas on the nose.  I am glad to report the Brett fades a bit, only somewhat detectable from some hints on the front.  The apple becomes a little more prevailent on the palate and the limestone minerality just goes on and on.  Medium plus bright acidity on a medium body, the alcohol is a bit bigger than normal because of the hot vintage.  A great value bottling that did well for 2 years in my cellar.

Have an example of this against an equivalent example from California and pair against a simple lunch of grilled ham and brie paninis and some homemade potato salad.  Salute!