Nose
White peach flesh, mother of pearl and lightly toasted cashews, granite and flint.
Palate
Soft entry of jasmine flower, pear and citrus blossom flecked with pristine acidity and slight honeyed notes. Fine texture and pithy acidity at its core, finishing with yet more blossoms, stone fruit and subtle wet slate tones.
Growing Conditions
The 2016 to 2017 vintage enjoyed accumulated warmth up until the new year. January temperatures were similar to historical data for the area, in contrast, February and March were a fraction cooler. Those who risked all by waiting for the Indian Summer were rewarded with tannin ripeness and the retention of the most beautiful fruit perfumes at relatively low sugar levels.
Winemaking
The fruit for our Estate Chardonnay is hand-harvested, chilled and whole-cluster pressed to retain freshness and cultivate texture and structure. The juice is settled cold and racked after 2 days, harvesting only the lightest and most delicate grape solids to further aid in textural and aromatic development. The juice is barrel fermented in a combination of old and new French oak barriques. The wine is sulphured pre-malolactic fermentation, in order to further preserve fresh fruit aromatics and pure acidity. It is then aged in oak for 9 months and battonaged every two weeks to develop texture and additional palate complexity before bottling.
Aging
This is a fresh drink now style, but can be aged for up to 10 years for added complexity.
Appearance
Pale green.
