As the nights draw in and our winter hibernation begins we have put together an exclusive Black Market selection of rich, creamy everyday drinking Chardonnay to keep you warm during the colder months.

1 x Wild Rock Hawkes Bay Chardonnay 2014

Pale golden straw colour. Enticing aromatics of ripe pears and peaches, lemon zest and a hint of toasted oak. Ripe stonefruit flavours on the palate are balanced by fresh acidity and a slight sweetness of oak. Medium in length with an immediately appealing juicy finish. Grapes for this wine were hand harvested and aged for 10 months in French oak barriques and puncheons (10% of which was new oak). This wine can be enjoyed 1 - 5 years from vintage

Food Pairing: Great with light dishes with fish & poultry.

Alc: 13.2% - Seal: Screew Cap

1 x Kumeu Village Chardonnay 2018

The weighty mid-palate also shows peachy ripeness along with crisp acid minerality that gives the wine a refreshing cleansing quality.

Produced from hand harvested grapes grown in Kumeu and Hawkes Bay this wine was fermented 80% in old French oak barriques, and 20% in stainless steel tanks. The barrel fermentation provides some richness but very little oak in influence. Combined with the tank fermentation this allows the vibrant fruit to show through beautifully with lively lime and lemon aromas and a flinty, mineral edginess with hints of fig and white peach.

Food Pairing: This wine is delightful as an aperitif, and even better to drink with fish and shellfish.

Alc: 13.5% - Seal: Screw Cap

1 x Summerhouse Marlborough Chardonnay 2017

Awarded 91/100 points & 4.5 stars: Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, Aug 2018

AWARDED 18/20 POINTS & 4 Stars: Raymond Chan, Aug 2018

"A beautifully styled Chardonnay; the lifted bouquet shows white flesh stone fruit, rockmelon, lemon peel and toasted almond characters with nuances of vanilla and spice. The palate delivers bright fruit flavours together with smooth mouthfeel and well pitched acidity, leading to a persistent creamy finish. At its best: now to 2020" Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, Aug 2018

"Even straw-yellow colour with pale, lemon-gold hues, a little lighter on the edge. The nose is moderately deep with firm, well-packed aromas of white and yellow stonefruits entwined with a layer of flinty lees and fresh reductive minerals that lend complexity. Medium-full bodied, the palate has a concentrated heart of stonefruit and citrus fruit with sweetness and richness, unfolding a gentle layer of nutty notes and gunflinty notes. The palate is balanced and harmonious, with the core providing good body and presence. The wine flows along a fresh line, with fine-textures, leading to a lingering finish. This is a moderately sweet, rich and concentrated Chardonnay with a core of srtonefruit, nuts and complex flinty elements on a harmonious palate with good body and length. Match with roasted poultry, pork and veal over the next 3+ years. Marlborough fruit, 40% from Omaka and 30% each from Brancott and Rapaura, fermented in tank with 25% in barrel to 13.5% alc., the barrel component aged in wood for 9 months undergoing batonnage with 25% of the wine undergoing MLF" Raymond Chan, Aug 2018

Food Pairing: Pan seared scallops or a chicken Alfredo.

Alc: 13.5% - Seal: Screw Cap

1 x Rapaura Classic Marlborough Chardonnay 2017

This 2017 Classic Marlborough Chardonnay displays aromas of vanillin oak, honey dew melon and lemon peel citrus notes giving way to complex notes of clove and cinnamon. On the palate, white stone fruits and spicy cinnamon oak, with a soft acid structure and lovely minerality. 

Cooler temperatures during the 2017 growing season extended the ripening period and delivered trademark Marlborough flavours. Careful vineyard and crop management decisions were made to ensure fruit was harvested clean, phenologically ripe and full of flavour. Once pressed, the juice was fermented in a selection of French oak barriques and stainless steel to achieve a nice balance between the toasty oak characters and the fresh, ripe fruit flavours. Partial malolactic fermentation has softened the wine and added extra texture to the palate. This 2017 classic wine showcases some of the luscious Chardonnay flavours and aromas from this beautiful Marlborough region.

Food Pairing: Wonderful on its own, or pair with grilled seafood.

Alc: 13.0% - Seal: Screw Cap

1 x McWilliams Markview Chardonnay 2017 (Australia)

Pale straw with a hint of yellow in the glass. The boquet shows ripe stone fruit, peach blossom and white nectarine with a hint of pineapple are supported by a fine nutty character and subtle background oak.The palate opens immediately with fresh fruit flavoursbalanced against a pleasant creamy texture and soft finish. Oak is supportive yet restrained and the acid provides good drive and length, which is nicely balanced with a little sweetness.

Selected fruit parcels were harvested in the cool of the night at optimum maturity level to maintain freshness and maximise flavour. This wine was fermented to dryness on premium French oak and stirred on yeast lees for a period of three to four months to build creaminess and texture with a portion of the wine set aside undergoing malolactic fermentation. This portion was back blended into the wine to add further complexity. 

Food Pairing: An ideal match with scallops, oysters, or creamy chicken casserole

Alc: 13.5% - Seal: Screw Cap

1 x Evans & Tate 'Butterball' Chardonnay 2018 (Australia)

Mid-straw with a touch of green-gold. Juicy stone fruit, ripe melon and tinned pear with toasty oak, roasted spices and creamy, buttery notes. Rich, full and seamless. Creamy stone fruits fill the mouth initially with lovely warm spice flavours adding richness and complexity. A long and full-flavoured classic Chardonnay.

2018 was an extraordinary vintage in Margaret River, with wet winter months followed by a warm spring to promote budburst and a dry early summer perfect for fruit set. Isolated heavy rain then swelled the fruit, with a beautiful late summer of warm days and cool nights; ideal conditions for accentuating the flavour, ripeness and acid balance of the grapes.

The vineyards that grow Chardonnay for Butterball are located on sites in central and northern Margaret River that produce rich, ripe fruit flavours and lower natural acid levels than other locations. The grapes were chilled and softly pressed to liberate the juice, with the pressings added back to the free-run juice to achieve our style. The cloudy juice was then fermented in a combination of new and used French oak barrels and tank using a combination of wild fermentations and a selected yeast used to produce savoury characters. 80% of the wine then went through malo-lactic fermentation followed by maturation on yeast lees with stirring of the lees done fortnightly to impart texture, balance, integration and complexity to the final wine. After this maturation period, the wine was blended and bottled under screwcap.

Food Pairing: Fresh seafood or slow roasted pork.

Alc: 13.5% - Seal: Screw Cap

Vintages may change.