Natural or inoculated yeast, cool or warmer fermentations, fermenting in stainless steel or oak barrels, maturation in new or older oak, malolactic fermentation (where the appley malic acid becomes the more creamy lactic acid) or not, lees stirring etc, etc.
Many of these techniques are about texture and mouthfeel, married with the fruit, acidity/pH and tannins to craft a complete and more complex finished wine.
2021 Helio Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay
Rating Excellent to Outstanding
Engaging ripe fruit, towards the tropical
spectrum. Perfume,
almost musk, a wisp
of butterscotch,
delightful as it opens
up. A coolness to
this, refined, elegant
yet deceptive power
lurks beneath. The
fruit shifts between
stone and tropical
fruits, spicy notes
carrying to the
close. Bright acidity,
lovely chewiness to
the texture. Vibrant,
nice energy, super
stuff.
2021 Riverby Estate Single Vineyard Marlborough Chardonnay
Rating Excellent to Outstanding
Flecks of yeast and
woodsmoke, a wisp of
corruption at first shifts
to citrus, oatmeal,
lightly seasoned oak,
the fruit nicely in
support. Creamy
texture, warm baguette,
clotted cream, white
fruits shifting to yellow,
a hint of fruit/sour jube
too. Power to the
expression, yet
elegance also.
Beautiful balance and
drive, the flavours hang
in the mouth.
Riverby Estate Single Vineyard Old Vine Reserve Marlborough Chardonnay
Rating Excellent
Spicy, scented oak
notes lead, cream
cheese lactic
characters,
woodsmoke, nicely
integrated fruit. Crisp
and racy, lemon and
lime to the fore,
Mackintosh’s toffee, a
little anise running
through to the close.
This grows and builds
on the nose and palate.
A youthful quality to
this with potential
ahead. Pair with roast
chook perhaps?
2021 Craggy Range Gimblett Gravels Vineyard Chardonnay
Rating Very Good to Excellent
No doubts as to the
grape. Hard caramel,
nutty hints, spices,
peachy fruit in support,
perfume growing over
time. The palate heads
off on a tangent, the
acidity lending a
vibrantly tangy, sour
worms-like quality.
Citrus, wet clay, nuts,
a fruit pith-like quality,
too. Youthfully bright,
lip-smacking, I may be
underscoring this, the
stuffing is here to grow
nicely in the bottle.
2020 Elephant Hill Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay
Rating Excellent
Stonefruits, fruit
sherbet, rock melon,
wet stone, cashew nut,
bonfire embers. Very
expressive. Nice
textural richness,
cream, spices, nuts,
the stonefruits shifting
to a tropical spectrum,
with a little fruit pith
adding grip to the
texture. A good
structural backbone,
matched by
complexity, with a
darker, charry note
coming in on the close.
Super drinking now.
2021 Main Divide North Canterbury Chardonnay
Rating Very Good to Excellent
Struck match notes
lead, shifting to
orange/mandarin
zest, stonefruits and
oak nuances. Ripe
and richly fruited,
underpinned by a
charry quality. Bold,
spicy, there’s a lot of
drinking pleasure to
be had here, yet
there’s a chewiness
to the texture that
will add to the food
friendliness as well.
A tanginess on the
close adds a fresh
touch to the finish.
