Tohu Whenua Awa Single Vineyard Marlborough Chardonnay 2021

Description

Grapefruit, Oak, Smoke

Aromas of juicy ripe stonefruit, pink grapefruit and soft smoky oak. Richly textured palate of fresh citrus and juicy summer fruits, with hints of toasted hazelnut 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.

Wild, wet spring resulted in poor flowering and lower bunch numbers with smaller berries than average. Dry and warm conditions in the summer following resulted in pristine fruit with bold, concentrated fruit flavours, harvested early April 2021. Grapes were sustainably grown using organic and regenerative viticulture practices.

Hand-harvested grapes, gently whole-bunch pressed to French oak puncheons. Fermentation with ‘wild’ yeasts that are naturally found in the vineyard. Post-fermentation, each barrel underwent weekly bâtonnage (lees stirring) with natural malolactic fermentation occurring once the weather warmed in the spring. Bottled unfiltered and unfined in late March 2022, 600 bottles produced.