Gibbston Valley China Terrace Single Vineyard Central Otago Chardonnay 2017

Description

This wine displays a pale straw colour. Some golden peach, honeydew and barrel complexity on the nose. After a lively beginning, the palate expands subtly with 22.8 quiet grace. The impression is of finesse and elegance with layers of creamy fruit.

A year with a cold beginning, 2017 had a very fine, settled ending. This was needed after the cold spring and windy early summer, the result of which was uneven set after flowering. Very pleasant conditions followed from February onwards. The fruit was harvested 2-3 weeks later than normal, with 10-15% lower crop levels.

The China Terrace Vineyard is located in the Bendigo subregion of Central Otago. Gently sloped on the lower edge of a large terrace (named China Terrace), it unfolds Pinot Noir and Chardonnay over some 6 hectares. Being over 320m above sea level, it retains a coolness relative to Bendigo’s natural warmth. This, and the complex accumulation of loess, clay and schist in its soil, gives wines of fresh, bright complexity.

Fruit is encouraged to ripe evenly, and picked when flavours are in the citrus / peach / mineral spectrum. The winemaking is simple: hand picked fruit is very gently pressed to a maximum yield of 550 L/tonne, then sent directly to barrel on full solids for fermentation. Fermentation and MLF (90%) are indigenous. The wine spends 10 months in 20% new oak; with a mix of puncheons and barriques being used.

This wine’s youthful tension will open up over the next 10-15 years.

Food Pairing: Pair with delicious creamy sauces or tasty white fish dishes.