Yesterday, we enjoyed dinner a Chardonnay from California paired with Italian sausage, garden fresh zucchini and potatoes.

C. Donatiello Winery produced this 2006 Chardonnay Russian River Valley, which is located in Sonoma. The winery produces vineyard specific wines and this particular Chardonnay. This dark yellow Chardonnay was complex. The aroma offered nuances that included citrus with hints of lemon, green apple and a touch of pear. The Taste was smooth with medium body. This is a dry wine. There is a nice marriage on the finish of apple and caramel with a citrus influence.

The C. Donatiello logo is unique and comprised the label for the “front” of the wine bottle. The letter C has been Taken and placed at three different direction to form a “dot.” These “dots” are then placed in the shape of the letter D. The result is simple and yet creative and sophisticated. The “back” label includes information for consumers such as harvest date, barrel aging, barrel composition, date the wine was bottled and cases produced.

The petite size potatoes were scrubbed, and tossed with 100% Varietal Grape-Seed Oil Grapefruit Chardonnay from Après Vin. The potatoes were sprinkled with sea salt and wrapped in aluminum foil – grilled until done. The finished potatoes were good. The same was done with the small zucchini, which was cut into quarters. The zucchini was excellent. Many times I find zucchini to be somewhat bland, but the Grapefruit Chardonnay grape-seed oil added so much flavor that I am actually looking forward to eating more.

Cheers! Kathy