Chardonnay
Single Variety
Clare Valley 68% / Margaret River 32%
At release the wine is a very pale straw colour with a youthful green hue.
The wine has intense lifted aromas of melon and lime with hints of stone fruits. There are underlying tropical notes of green pineapple and guava and subtle secondary characters of flint, cedar and spice.
On the palate the wine delivers well-balanced and evenly distributed fruit flavours of classic melon and peach along with underlying creamy notes from the lees stirring. Texturally, it has a retrained, tight structure overall and yet still displays a measure of subtle creaminess to the mid palate and rewards with well integrated oak. The Clare Valley parcel delivers mid palate fleshiness whilst the Adelaide Hills component contributes the restraint and elegance that are typical of this region. Overall, the wine has a great palate line with length which lingers long after the wine is consumed.
The wine was matured in French oak barrels (50% 1 year old, 50% a combination of 2 and 3 year old) for a period of 12 months before being bottled.
For the Clare Valley growing season leading up to vintage 2017, the year's rainfall was above average, it was the wettest recorded since 2000. Soil temperatures remained very low due to the waterlogged conditions & the below average ambient temperatures recorded through the spring resulted in budburst occurring a month later than in recent years. Weather conditions during flowering were favourable & hence fruit set was good across all varieties. Harvest began in late February and picking continued at a slow and steady rate until early May due to the prevailing mild conditions. Overall, our winemakers declared the vintage to be above average in terms of quantity & fruit quality. In Margaret River, vintage started 2-3 weeks later than the preceding couple of years. This was due to the mild, cool spring weather in the southern part of the state. Cool ripening conditions helps maintain the fresh, bright aromas of varieties like Chardonnay & those from the 2017 vintage are quite stunning in their liveliness and flavour. Autumn was simply perfect; cool crisp mornings & evenings but beautiful warm & sunny days; not too hot, textbook conditions for what may well prove to be a classic Margaret River year, with elegance rather than robustness, flavour rather than force.
Crafted for immediate enjoyment but will cellar over a medium term under ideal conditions.
13.00%
6.50
3.20
1.50
Single: 750ml bottle, Case: 6 x 750ml bottle
