Tasting Notes

The wine displays a bright, pale lemon colour.  On the nose, ripe citrus and melon fruit is enhanced by complex characters derived from winemaking technique.  Fermentation of slightly cloudy juice has contributed meaty aromas, malolactic fermentation has added butter/dairy characters, French oak maturation has given toast and smoky/bacon elements and extended lees contact has resulted in a creaminess on both nose and palate.  In the mouth, the wine shows richness and power, the ripe fruit flavours being framed by clean acidity and a touch of oak-derived dryness at the finish.

Production Notes

Grapes from the two Chardonnay vineyards at Leongatha were harvested between 10^th and 24^th April, 2000.  Picking decisions were based primarily on flavour assessment, healthy grapes being harvested by hand at ripeness levels ranging from 22.8 to 23.6 Brix.

The grapes were chilled overnight before being whole-bunch pressed to yield the finest juice.  Brief settling in tank was followed by transfer of the juice to oak barrels for fermentation.  The all-French new oak component was 30% of the total, and purchased from a range of coopers.

Fermentation was initiated by inoculation with a favoured Burgundy yeast strain and allowed to progress with minimal intervention until dryness.  Following primary fermentation, spontaneous malolactic fermentation was allowed to occur, and the separate batches were left on yeast lees, with occasional stirring, for ten months until final racking, blending, fining and bottling in February, 2001.