Moutere Hills Sarau Reserve Chardonnay 2018 $55 Nelson chardonnay is oft overshadowed by the big names from the likes of Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne – but I tell you what, if more people get their chops around chardonnay like this, then Nelson will storm the stage. The Sarau Reserve is Moutere Hills flagship wine, made … Read More
Chardonnay
Abbey Estate Wild Fermented Bridge Pa Chardonnay 2019
Abbey Estate Wild Fermented Bridge Pa Chardonnay 2019 $30 Yum Yum Yumminny! This is a really interesting, multi-layered lovely from Dermot and his team at Abbey Estate in Hawke’s Bay’s Bridge Pa Triangle Wine District. Bursting with white nectarine, apricot, grapefruit pith, dried herb and nutty, toasty, caramelised characters in the mid-palate, it carries a … Read More
Wairiki The Matriarch Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2020
Wairiki The Matriarch Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2020 $29 A rather sexy chardonnay from possibly the newest and tiniest winery you’ve never heard of. Scented with creme caramel, soft peach, almond and grapefruit pith, the palate is fresh, soothing and edged with citrus. Grown high on the ancient, free-draining Ngaruroro River terraces, west of Hastings, this … Read More
Ash Ridge Premium Late Harvest Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2019
Ash Ridge Premium Late Harvest Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2019 $29 375ml It’s not a common thing finding a dessert-style chardonnay, but Lauren Swift and her team at Ash Ridge seem to be able to regularly turn out sweet, sticky superstar examples on the regular. Scented with grilled pineapple, roast peach, lemon meringue and marmalade all … Read More
Ash Ridge Ariel Hawke’s Bay Blanc de Blanc 2018
Ash Ridge Ariel Hawke’s Bay Blanc de Blanc 2018 $45 This classy Blanc de Blanc (100% Chardonnay), was crafted in the traditional vintage Champagne method where the initial base wine was barrel fermented and left on lees for 1 year before being bottled and re-fermented to build its ultra-fine mousse (bubbles), and then left again … Read More
Ash Ridge Premium Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2017
Ash Ridge Premium Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2017 $32 Very, very toasty with hints of sawdust and spice: the caramelised characters in this Lauren Swift-crafted wine will definitely appeal to those who love old-school roastiness and nutty, creamy layers in their chardonnay. That was a long sentence — almost as long as the finish on this … Read More
Yealands State of Flux Marlborough Chardonnay 2019
Yealands State of Flux Marlborough Chardonnay 2019 $39.99 Soft citrus and soft peach and a hint of preserved lemon is what you can expect on the nose and the palate is creamy and shows tweaks of ground almond and melon. Fermented in Yealands concrete eggs, which some winemakers believe creates a more gentle environment for … Read More
The Hunting Lodge Home Block Waimauku Chardonnay 2019
The Hunting Lodge Home Block Waimauku Chardonnay 2019 $64 Grown on the Waimauku Clays, half an hour or so’s drive out west of the Auckland CBD on the Northwestern motorway, Chief Winemaker Pete Turner has been carefully watching over their 80acre estate to finally decide if and when it’d produce chardonnay worthy of their flagship … Read More
Ashwell Martinborough Chardonnay 2019
Ashwell Martinborough Chardonnay 2019 $28 If you’re looking for a lemony, citrus-forward, mineral-edged chardonnay instead of a fruit salady, buttery, oak-bomb then you’ve come to the right campsite. Clean, focused, lighter-styled and showing that rain-on-hot-rocks character that works itself into a slight saline character. It’s Chablis-like in its citrus dimensions and acidity. Tip: Be careful … Read More
Gabriele Meffre La Châsse Vin De France Chardonnay 2019
Gabriele Meffre La Châsse Vin De France Chardonnay 2019 $19 Lovers of lighter-styled, citrus-soaked chardonnay that focuses on fruit and not buckets of smoky oak, will love this wine. Fresh, electrically vibrant, its a taut, tense, tangelo-tastic style that’s named after the lavishly decorated ‘chests’ that the pontiff’s of 14th century Avignon used to store … Read More