2007 Cloudy Bay Chardonnay

Winemaker's Notes
"An irresistible mix of ripe citrus and toasted nut aromas reminiscent of grapefruit, fig and pistachio biscotti taken with chamomile tea. The palate leads with savoury notes which give way to a taut citrus core, revealing the vibrant Marlborough fruit. Natural yeast fermentation and judicious oak handling combine to deliver a refined and textural finish. Expect the 2007 Cloudy Bay Chardonnay to age gracefully over the next five to seven years."

Technical Notes
"The majority of the crop was hand-picked and loaded directly into tank presses to minimise fruit handling and enhance palate structure. The remainder of the fruit was machine -harvested into small bins and pressed in the same fashion. After settling, the majority of the juice was transferred directly to barrels and allowed to ferment using indigenous yeast strains before going through malolactic fermentation. The rest of the juice was transferred to stainless steel tanks and inoculated with a cultured yeast strain, before being transferred to barrel to complete fermentation. The individual components were blended after one full year in French oak barrels (a low proportion of which were new) and the wine remained on yeast lees for a further period prior to a light fining for clarification. Final analysis shows an alcohol of 14.0v/v, pH 3.22 and acid of 7.1g/l."