Black Cottage Reserve Marlborough Chardonnay 2017

Description

"Beautifully fruited and inviting, the wine shows ripe peach, rockmelon, vanilla, nougat and hazelnut characters on the nose, leading to a succulent palate that is wonderfully rounded and creamy. It is gorgeously composed and styled with plenty of delectable flavours, finishing long and silky. At its best: now to 2021" Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, Mar 2019

Golden straw in colour, the bouquet has nectarine, peach and marzipan aromas, mingling with toasty vanilla bean and shaved almond notes. Undertones of roasted cashew, almond blossom and salted caramel come through. The palate is well-balanced with good focus, lingering stonefruit flavours and crystalline acidity.

The grapes for this Chardonnay were predominately sourced from a vineyard in the Wairau Valley with a small portion coming from the Southern Valleys. A mixture of Clone 6, 95 and 15 were handpicked and whole bunch pressed. The wine was fermented on light solids, followed by full malolactic fermentation before being oak aged for 11 months.