PALLISER ESTATE CHARDONNAY

Tasting notes:

Pours a bright, yellow gold, deep and even to the edges.

Delicious almond meal and shortbread aromas leap from the glass, closely pursued by toasted hazelnut, ‘Scarlet O’Hara’ peach, French vanilla and citrus blossom. Complete, complex and luxurious even in its youth, there is a gentle whiff of sea breeze to activate your saliva glands and complete the picture.

Elegantly creamy and medium-bodied, fleshy peaches and yellow tree fruits are the heart of this wine, the hazelnut notes wound tightly around a spine of bright nectarine acidity. Vanilla shortbread and custard add decadence and volume to the mid-palate, the finish lengthy, creamy and satisfying in relation to its middleweight punching power. This 2018 Palliser Estate Chardonnay is a beautiful example of the house style – rich, creamy and elegant, with a bright stonefruit acidity that retains your attention throughout the evening.

About the wine:

A blend of chardonnay clones 15, 95, and 548, from the ‘Om Santi’ and ‘Palliser’ vineyards. Vines aged between 6 and 12 years. Fully barrel fermented with moderate solids, using mostly indigenous yeasts to 13% alcohol. The wine was aged 10 months on lees in 20% new French oak, undergoing partial Malo-lactic fermentation.

About the producer:

Pioneers and part of New Zealand’s wine-growing heritage, Palliser estate harvested their first grapes in 1989 and started exporting in 1991. Ever since they have won world-wide recognition for the consistency and outstanding quality of their wines, picking up a whole string of competition gold medals (eighty to date) along the way, not to mention the accolade of being voted Exporter of the Year by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise.

To capitalise on the fabulous terroir here, the sun-baked terrace, the old river plain and loamy free-draining soil, the estate has a highly-skilled winemaker/viticulturist in Allan Johnson who has been with Palliser since 1991. This dual role allows him to have complete control of the wine-producing process from grape to bottle. The philosophy here is to work towards high quality fruit and produce wines of elegance and a sense of place, in as environmentally friendly a way as possible. The success of their wine-producing policy gained recognition in 1998 when they one of the first three wineries in the world to be certified to International Environmental Standard ISO 14001.

Food match:

Perfect with classic roast chicken, roast pork or even better, crispy pork belly.