Dog Point Marlborough Chardonnay 2021

Description

• Spicy oak
• Lemon curd
• Baking spice
• Juicy acidity

"Intense Chardonnay with lemon curd, oyster shell, ginger, struck flint, and attractively integrated spicy oak flavours. Youthful wine with bright, juicy acidity that brings energy while driving a lengthy finish, Classy Chardonnay. Should develop well with bottle age" Bob Campbell, Master of Wine, Real Review, Sep 2023

"A very enticing bouquet of ripe stone fruits and barrel spices, some wood smoke and blond tobacco suggestions. Excellent weight and intensity on the palate with a distinctive mouthfeel and texture, there’s no mistaking the oak, lees autolysis and baking spice qualities. Flavours of peaches and nectarines, grapefruit and white smoke all combine to deliver a wine of freshness and power. Best drinking from 2023 through 2029+" Cameron Douglas, Master Sommelier, Oct 2023

Deep straw in colour. A fresh and subtle expression with cool, citrus tones, hazelnuts and lanolin notes. The impact of 18 months elevage adding elements of oatmeal and brioche. Bracing, fresh, ripe, citrus leads on the palate. Lovely, salivating acidity gives the wine drive and focus before more subtle creamy textures build on the finish. Tightly coiled with generous concentration, it will reward a few extra years in the cellar before drinking. Cellaring Drinks beautifully now or can be cellared for 10+ years.

Marlborough home vineyards on clay hill slopes and surrounding foothills. 2.2 tonnes/hectare. Vines are 27 years old on average. Some plantings dating back to 1981. Harvested 5th – 22nd March 2021. 76% Mendoza, 24% Clone 95. Clay and silt/clay loams with interspersed gravel.

A cool and frosty start to the growing season and flowering period, naturally reduced yields to our lowest levels in over 20 years. Novembers rain was welcomed prior to the driest summer on record with only 66mm (50% lower than average) over this period. Temperatures were warm, only slightly above average, which enabled a smooth, steady growing season with little disease pressure.

Hand picked and gently pressed, prior to a brief overnight settling of the juice. 100% wild primary and secondary fermentations in barrel (10% new) over eighteen months. Bottled without fining and with only minimal filtration.