"Handled without oak, the 2014 vintage was hand-picked on limestone terraces at Havelock North. Pale lemon/green, it is freshly scented and very youthful, with ripe, citrusy, peachy flavours in an elegant, slightly minerally style with obvious cellaring potential" Michael Cooper

"Bright straw-yellow colour with slight green-gold hues, light on edge. The nose is firm and well-concentrated with tightly bound aromas of white and yellow stonefruits, refreshed by steely, mineral notes and lifted by piquant citrus fruit elements. Subtle, complexing lees elements add to the interest. Dry to taste and medium bodied, this is elegant in proportion with finely concentrated flavours of citrus and stonefruits, along with nuances of nuts and flinty lees. The fruit is expressed with clarity and the mouthfeel fresh with precise, lacy acidity. The wine follows a fine textural thread with mineral linearity, leading to a lively, refreshing finish with good concentration and length. This is an elegantly concentrated unoaked Chardonnay with focussed citrus and stonefruit flavours and a fresh, minerally palate. Serve with seafood and poultry" Raymond Chan, Jul 2015

"Lots of Hawke’s Bay ripe fruit intensity with aromas and flavours of California peach, some mineral, apple then lots of oak, good oak – light brown sugar tones and light toastiness. Youthful and tense on the palate, slightly firm; great food wine with medium+ length. With a little time to settle into an integration phase this will be a wine worth the wait" Cameron Douglas, Master Sommelier, Apr 2016

Typical pale straw colour of young Chardonnay. An intense tropical fruit spectrum dominates the aroma profile of this Chardonnay – notes of ripe nectarine and peach with hints of pineapple and banana. Fresh, ripe and vibrant. A flavour burst of ripe Chardonnay fruit here with lingering fruit sweetness and a creamy texture. The clean, fresh stone fruit is the essence of this wine. The palate is concentrated but at the same time lively, balanced and elegant

De La Terre is a small family-owned boutique winery specialising in hand-made wines from an unusual mix of grape varieties. The wines are crafted by Tony Prichard, owner and winemaker, in the small earth-brick winery he built, west of Hastings. The name ‘de la terre’, literally meaning ‘of the earth,’ is a reference to both the vineyard soils and the earth brick construction used in the winery and cellar door.

Grapes were hand harvested from De La Terre's Hill Country Estate from their main terrace. This wine was cool-fermented in a temperature-controlled stainless steel tank using a yeast specially selected to highlight the tropical fruit characteristics of Chardonnay.  Following fermentation, the wine was gently stabilised and filtered prior to bottling. This is essentially a 'naked' Chardonnay as it has never been in contact with any type of oak, nor has it undergone any malo-lactic fermentation. It is a Chardonnay style to enjoy when young, fresh and vibrant.