(December 28, 2016) … It is with a degree of sadness that I report on the demise of this Lailey 2010 Brickyard Chardonnay – no it is not completely dead yet, but it is lying in wait at a hospice care facility: oxidizing, a little burnt / rancid butter, bitter, lacks fruit, flat-lining and unappealing … the hot vintage might have had something to do with the longevity of this wine not being what one would expect from Lailey.
So I dug out another Lailey Chardonnay, this time the 2013 Curiosi-Three The Blend; I was told it might not be a wine for the long term and I believe that advice was spot on; while this one was much more fruit forward and drinkable than the 2010 above, it is still showing signs of tiring: almond, peach pit, there is a pseudo oxidized note to this wine that drifts in and out with every sip, but there is also some nice flavours of apple seed and butterscotch candy towards the finish … Don’t wait too long on this one, it’s getting old so you’ll want to enjoy it before it too joins the 2010 Brickyard at the hospice.