Tohu Whenua Awa Single Vineyard Marlborough Chardonnay 2019

Description

Grapefruit, Oak, Smoke

"Complex and engaging, the wine shows golden peach, lemon peel, vanillin oak, gun smoke and brioche characters on the nose, followed by a concentrated palate offering rich texture and expansive mouthfeel. It's powerfully graceful with layers of delectable flavours, finishing impressively long and satisfying. At its best: now to 2030" Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, Dec 2023

Aromas of juicy ripe stonefruit, pink grapefruit and soft smoky oak. Richly textured palate of fresh citrus, jucy summer fruits and hints of toasted nut and flint. Complex, irresistible wine with seamless balance, refinement and length. Select fruit from our Awa Block, Awatere Valley, fermented in 500L French oak puncheons to create integrated body and complexity. Flinty, fruity and generous.

Awatere Valley, Marlborough, New Zealand. Awa (River) Block. Planted 2010. 1.10ha. Silt-loam terraced block renowned for its long, cool ripening period.

The 2018/2019 growing season began with unsettled weather that brought plenty of rain during flowering and resulted in slightly lower yields. Warm still dry conditions in the late summer, enabled the grapes to ripen evenly across the block with fantastic flavour profile.

Hand-harvested grapes, gently whole-bunch pressed. Unsettled juice then moved to old French oak puncheons for fermentation. Fermentation with natural ‘wild’ yeasts, with a cultivated yeast added part way through fermentation to assist the wine to dryness. Post-fermentation, each barrel underwent twice weekly batonage (yeast stirring). Malolactic fermentation occurred once the weather warmed in the spring. Individual barrel assessment, with only the best deemed exceptional enough to make the final blend. Bottled March 2020 - 1751 bottles produced.