What happens when you age 2BuckChuck

I've never knocked Trader Joe's infamous Charles Shaw wines, aka Two Buck Chuck. I like value, and these wines generally tend to be somewhat drinkable, especially the third or fourth glass.

Last week my dear friend Steph brought over a bottle of Charles Shaw Chardonnay for our True Blood watching night. The ladies didn't get into it that evening, but a few days later I popped it open in a I-feel-like-a-Sunday-night-glass-of-anything moment.

Before I describe this wine, there's something you need to know about me. I loathe oaked Chardonnay. In fact, the words "buttery, oaky, toasty" send shivers down my spine. I prefer my butter on in a tub of popcorn, not in a glass.

But I'm trying to appreciate oaked Chard, if nothing for the fact that it's nine times out of ten the default white wine at a cheap open bar, like the ones you find at scientific conference receptions.

So when I tasted the wine, I was very pleasantly surprised. Oaked, sure, but subtly, like passing a leaf bonfire in the fall while driving fast in your car. Just a hint. And balanced, with rich apple and honey flavors balancing the oak. Wow, not bad I thought. And then I looked at the bottle.

(Full disclaimer: this photo is not mine. I recycled the bottle before I realized it would make a dramatic photo.)

2005! 2BuckChuck ages well.

Then I googled the 2005 "vintage" and read that it won the CA State Fair blind judging that year--a good year for Ole' Chucky Shaw. Still, what a value, not counting inflation.