buttery finish

[Randy Caparoso]

I agree that "buttery" tastes are often found in reds -- especially warm climate (including Napa Valley) Cabernets from California. I also remember quite a number of old style California Barberas (especially Sebastiani's) having a touch of butter in the nose and flavor.

But it's funny, even though California Chardonnays that undergo malolactic fermentation are associated with "buttery" tastes, nowadays it's quite rare to find Chardonnays that actually smell or taste like the stuff Fabio likes so much. At the most, "creamy" aromas and textures have become par.

The reason for this is because battonage (stirring of the lees, or spent yeast cells) or at least lees contact during barrel aging has long become standard practice, going hand in hand with malolactic regimes. Lees contact has proven quite effective in absorbing most of the perceptible diacetyl resulting from the conversion of malic to lactic acids. This is why Chardonnay based wines in Burgundy, for instance, almost never taste "buttery" either. For the French, malolactic/battonage methodology is as basic as ABC.

[This message has been edited by Randy Caparoso (edited 04-06-2002).]