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Premo Chardonnay 2005Tasting Notes: |
Harvest Date: 7 – 16th April Cellar and Tasting Notes Quarter of a century old Mendoza clone Chardonnay vines on their own roots have yielded minimal crops of intensely concentrated flavours and aromas. ‘Wild’ yeast’s fermented the wines with full solids retained in the unfined juice. The oak regime is all French oak barriques with the wines fermented in 100% new oak, (lasting about 4 –6 days) until they reach below 5 brix when they are then combined into all old oak. The wines are matured in the old oak for a period of 11 months and lees stirred every fortnight until they undergo a spontaneous Malolactic fermentation. They are then sulphured and left on gross lees until racking and bottling. Full solid ferments give savoury aromas that when combined with 100% new oak fermentation integrates with the oak characters to give burnt matchstick and toasted vanilla complexes. When combined with the scents of citrus and stone fruit along with the mealy character derived from lees stirring you create a unique aroma profile of layered complexity. Full solid ferments also give an intense phenolic structure therefore by transferring the wines to old oak to complete fermentation and for ageing we are aiming to reduce the amount of tannin pick up from the new oak. Malolactic fermentation plays an enormous role in defining the structure of Chardonnay. In 2005 where we had high levels of Malic acid and a full conversion would have resulted in a fat buttery wine. By aiming for a wine of elegance and acid focus each barrel was tasted weekly during the spring when the Malolactic bacteria became active. Each barrel was analysed by taste and then ‘stopped’ with sulphur dioxide when the desired acid balance was achieved. This is a wine of concentration, structure and complexity with a vibrant acid profile and striking grapefruit flavours, all of which will reward patient cellaring. |
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