From the winemaker…
This is impressively complex and inviting on the nose showing ripe peach, rockmelon, lemon peel, nougat and cedar characters with nuances of flint and spice. The palate is equally gratifying with excellent concentration and expansive mouthfeel, leading to an extremely long engaging finish.
3154 bottles produced
Mendoza and Clone 15 Chardonnay fruit was hand harvested on 6 April 2017 at 24.4 Brix and was whole bunch pressed to tank and settled overnight at 8 deg. The juice was racked to tank and warmed to 15deg before being transferred to French Oak barriques to undergo a ‘wild’ fermentation. The maximum fermentation temperature was 24 degrees and the fermentation lasted for two months. The wine was aged in oak for 9 months, of which approximately 36% was new oak. During this time the malo-lactic fermentation occurred spontaneously and the wine was lees stirred weekly to soften and add texture.
Bright, even, light straw-yellow throughout with a tinge of gold. The nose is soft, gentle notes of lemon sherbet, grapefruit mingling fresh herbs; poise with underlying power of dusty phenolic and subtle flintiness. Dry on the palate, bringing out a crisp mouthfeel and crunchy wet stone minerality. Creaminess fills the palate broaden its shape; citrus nuances of lemon, grapefruit, mandarin peels levitating with fresh herbs and chalky phenolics; subtle notes of pastry and delicate spices elevated the persistence finish. This is an elegant, medium-bodied Chardonnay with nuances of citrus fruit, freshness and wet stone minerality; poise with creaminess, the subtleness of pastry, delicate spices and flintiness contribute to its complexity. Although 2018 was a hot vintage, the fruit has been picked early to retain its freshness to create this elegant Chardonnay. Match with shellfish over the next 5+ years. Mendoza & Clone 15, biodynamically farmed. Handpicked, whole bunch pressed, wild-fermented in French barriques to 13.9% alc. Further aged in oak for 10 months, 36% new, 50% MLF.
19/20pts Candice Chow, Raymond Chan Wine Reviews June 2020
