The aim for this Chardonnay is to retain a fresh structure rather than producing a wine that is too broad. The clone and site help with this, but also the picking decisions also work to retain acidity in the glass.

This wine comes from a small parcel in the Twin Valley Vineyard, located in the Fareham Lane area of Marlborough. The vineyard is at the western end of the Wairau Valley, at the junction with the Waihopai, and is on the top terrace. The upper terrace along the Wairau has a more complex soil, a great mixture of silt, clay and stones that give drainage but also some water-holding to help the vines through the dry periods. Being some distance from the sea the climate is also cooler. The grapes therefore typically ripen more slowly and retain an interesting mineral character.

The vines were cropped low to ensure ripeness and palate richness. The grapes were then whole-cluster pressed and the high-solids juice taken straight to French barriques for fermentation with indigenous yeast. After 15 months in oak we felt the balance was correct and took the wine from barrel.

VARIETY: Chardonnay
WINEGROWING TEAM: Brian Bicknell, Phoebe Cathcart, our focused growers, and brilliant vintage staff
ALCOHOL: 13.5%
TITRATABLE ACIDITY: 7.8g/L
RESIDUAL SUGAR: <1.0 g/L
BRIX AT HARVEST: 22 - 22.5
HARVEST: Hand-picked, 17th & 18th March

TASTING NOTE