Smith & Sheth Cru Howell Vineyard Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2018 $40 
I love how precise this chardonnay is, how clean and crammed with citrus it is. With frisky grapefruit, pineapple, lemon and nectarine niceness, all juiced together with roast coconut, buttered crumpet and beautifully balanced oak complexity it’s a supremely elegant, elevated, citrus-focused and clean as a whistle. Its core of stone fruit and caramelised spices adds to its superb structure. Scaffolding that I’m certain will carry this chardonnay for many years ahead.
