2016 Whitehaven Marlborough Chardonnay
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TASTING NOTE
Colour / Appearance: Light to mid straw, with a gold hue and bright clarity.
Aroma / Bouquet: Nectarine and peach fruit flavours with hints of wet slate, matchstick, creaminess and savoury oak char.
Palate: A full bodied wine with a creamy, supple texture displaying rich stonefruit and tropical fruit flavours and savoury elements. These persist on the long, bright finish.
Cellaring: We recommend drinking our 2016 Chardonnay in the first 4 to 6 years after the vintage, but the wine has the structure and closure to allow continued development with careful cellaring.
Food Match: Our chardonnay is a perfect match when paired with Mediterranean foods, BBQ pork or chicken pies, and is also suited to creamy mushroom pastas.
ACCOLADES
- 18/20 - Andrew Graham, Oz Wine Reviews, 93/100 pts
- GOLD - Royal Easter Show
- 5 STARS - Sam Kim
- GOLD - Air New Zealand Wine Awards
WINE ANALYSIS
Alcohol: 13.5%
Residual Sugar: 1.2 g/L
Titratable Acidity: 5.4 g/L
pH: 3.40
VITICULTURE
Harvest Dates: 23rd March to 11th April, 2016
Vinification: The fruit was hand-picked and immediately whole cluster pressed. The heavy pressings were kept separate to minimise harsh phenolics. The juice was lightly settled before being inoculated for fermentation. Halfway through fermentation, the juice was transferred to French oak barrels of which 28% were new puncheons. Malo-lactic fermentation was carried out on all of the barrels and the lees stirred regularly during the 11 month maturation to aid texture and richness on the palate.
Vine Management: The vines are trained with two canes on a vertical trellis. Balanced pruning, shoot thinning, tucking and trimming are done to achieve an open, healthy canopy. Conditions were very dry early in the season, with average temperatures, clear skies and a high risk of frost. Warm conditions over flowering in mid-December resulted in good yields. Decent rain in early and mid-January, allowed for healthy canopies and vigorous growth. February was hot and dry, followed by warm, dry March; perfect weather for intense flavour development.
Winemaker: Sam Smail and Diana Katardzhieva
