Lore Chardonnay

Chardonnay is the grape that does what it's told. Plant it somewhere cool and it turns taut and citrus-driven. Plant it somewhere warm and it goes broad and peachy. Put it in new oak and it picks up vanilla and toast; leave it in steel and it stays lean and mineral. That range is why there is so much disappointing Chardonnay in the world, and why the honest, well-made, mid-priced ones are worth hunting out.

This is one of those. Under twenty pounds, unshowy, made to be drunk rather than admired. Orchard fruit and citrus at the core, a clean line of acidity holding it together, and no attempt whatsoever to pass itself off as white Burgundy. There is something genuinely likeable about a wine that knows what it is.

What it does well is food. Chardonnay's medium body and fresh acidity make it one of the most useful whites on the table — it can handle butter and cream without being flattened, and it won't fight a plate of vegetables either. Open it on a weeknight with something out of the oven and you'll see the point of it.

Drink it young, over the next year or two, while the fruit is still forward. This is not a bottle to put away.

How to Serve

Chill to 10–12°C, no colder — fridge-cold flattens the fruit and hides what little oak there is. Use a decent-sized white wine glass and give it five minutes out of the fridge before pouring. No decanting needed.

Where to Drink It

Noble Rot, for an honest glass poured by people who care. The Wolseley, where an unfussy white does real work alongside the menu. Dandy on Maltby Street for small plates.

Food Pairings

Roast chicken with a lemon in the cavity — the pairing nobody improves on. Failing that, a bowl of mussels, or a mushroom risotto where the acidity stops everything turning heavy.