Fraser Gallop Parterre Chardonnay
The wines of Fraser Gallop Estate are intensely flavoured, textured and complex. Only the finest quality French oak barrels are used for all Fraser Gallop Estate wines, with very specific Bordelais coopers used for the Cabernet Sauvignon and Semillon Sauvignon Blanc blends, and Burgundian coopers for the Chardonnay. The complete winemaking process takes place at the estate - picking to vinification to barrel maturation to bottling to cellaring. Fraser Gallop Estate is an estate grown, produced and bottled wine. Flavours of lemon curd and grapefruit with searing length. A wine with clarity and finesse. A tightly focussed and very precise wine showing seamless fruit purity with the lightly toasted French oak very much in the background. Crystalline acidity and a mouth-watering finish complete this Chardonnay.
Lark Hill Biodynamic Grüner Veltliner
Lark Hill have been the pioneers of this traditional Austrian variety. It was back in 2002 when Jancis Robinson visited the vineyards and stated that Lark Hill was the perfect place to grow Grüner Veltliner due to its overall terroir. With links to bio-dynaimc farming already being established, Chris Carpenter thought it was the obvious connection to begin making Grüner. Wonderfully fragrant with more than a hint of spice, Lark Hill's Grüner has a lovely textural component to it as well making it an ideal match white fish, shell fish and subtle charcuterie.
Hugel et Fils Pinot Gris
This Pinot gris by Hugel et Fils is rich and rounded, although still dry, it is ideal with terrines, white meats and fish in sauce. Of all the Alsace varieties, Tokay Pinot Gris has the greatest ageing potential.
Château Cos d'Estournel
Shaw & Smith M3 Chardonnay
Sourced and grown in the Adelaide Hills, this is a fine example of how good Chardonnay from this region can be. This is a blend of 3 different cultivars of the Chardonnay grape. Bunch pressed and in part wild fermented. Partial malolactic fermentation imparts further complexity. A beautifully textured and complex wine.
Giant Steps Sexton Vineyard Chardonnay
Giant Steps plays it's part in the rapid accension of Australian Chardonnay back to the position it once held here. That being of the king of white varieties. This is a very stylish numbe from Phil Sexton and his team. Stonefruit, melon and butterscotch characters are supported by vanillin oak and the palate is long and textured with a clean crisp finish.
Kusuda Riesling
Giovanni Rosso Etna Bianco
There’s nothing mysterious or untoward in the winemaking for this beauty. It’s kept on skins for a short period, then pressed, juice fermented over a couple of weeks, and aged on lees in stainless steel for five months. As with all Giovanni Rosso’s wines, this is about site. Site, and the ancient grapes (mostly carricante) that are thought to have been grown on the slopes of Mt Etna for at least 1,000 years. So they’ve had time to acclimatise. It’s a gorgeous, zesty-herby white, soft and pillowy and all propped up by a precise and racy acidity. It’s super long, and just bordering on mouthwatering. Quite subtle flavours flitting around the edges, hiding in the shadows and peeking out when you’re not concentrating.
Eileen Hardy Chardonnay
Simonnet-Febvre Chablis Premier Cru Vaillons
Pristine concentration and complexity of favour are the hallmarks of Simmonet-Febvre, a revered maker in Chablis. Stonefruits and ruby grapefruit with grilled nuts, owing no doubt to Simmonet-Febvre's insistence on ageing their Premier-Cru wines on lees for over a year. Has all the zippy-freshness you would expect from a high-level Chablis.