Pale yellow youthful green tinges, which I equate with quality young chardonnay. Aromatics are instantly very serious. Intense fruit nectarines and white peaches melding with lemon citrus beautiful French oak hovering just above the wine at the moment intense more than a cursory nod to Burgundy. The tiniest whiff of sulphides perfect for a wine of this age. When sipped, the wine shows its incredible intensity, no doubt derived from the very low yield.

Jeff and Vicky Dewar established Willow Bridge Estate after acquiring a spectacular 180ha hillside property in the Ferguson Valley, a sub region of Geographe. Under winemaker Kim Horton, many of its wines offer exceptional value for money. James Halliday rated their beautiful winery among his ‘Best Wineries of 2014’ and ‘Dark Horse Wineries of 2013’ Their G1-10 Chardonnay is full flavoured, complex and textural, yet still lively and refreshing with refined tight grain french oak offering backbone support. Winemaking exudes minimalist technique to allow expression of site. Bright staw in colour. Lifted citrus, white peach, lemon blossom and almond with intriguing complex elements of fine French oak. A precise palate of harmonious oak teamed with intense stone fruit, citrus and flint like palate, with a long flowing texture leading to fine acidity and spiced oak nuances.

Winemaker notes Colour: Pale Gold Bouquet: Our Reserve Chardonnay has a bright and lifted nose of sweet pastry, lemon curd and fleshy white stonefruit. Palate: The palate displays a rich and layered mix of fresh stonefruit, citrus and intense vanilla bean flavours. A fine mineral thread ensures a wine of length and persistence. Viticulture The vineyard is planted on Karri loam gravel soils with underlying laterite. Vine rows run north south down a moderate north facing slope and are clone Gin-Gin with trellis structured to vertical shoot positioning. The vineyard is subject to the cool Southern Ocean breezes and ripens slowly, evenly and with naturally high acidity. Winemaking The fruit is handpicked then cooled before whole bunch pressing. New and seasoned barrels are filled directly from the press to enhance complexity. Only the free run fraction is reserved with harder pressings separated to ensure a delicate and fine expression of the fruit in this wine. The juice is left to ferment spontaneously and can take up to three weeks to ferment with some cooling at the height of ferment. After ferment the barrels are topped and gently stirred with inert gas protection monthly. A small number of barrels were encouraged to finish malolactic fermentation to ameliorate the natural acidity. After nine months in barrel the wine is assembled in tank and aged on lees to further encourage complexity.

The palate exudes fleshy primary fruits, layered with nutmeal, lemon butter and brioche. A chalky, mineral texture and fresh citrus acidity continues the bounce.

This is a wonderfully concentrated wine. Complex on the nose with aromas of lemon, green apple and fig the palate shows lively flavours of citrus and melon and a beautifully textured crisp and long finish.

Barrel fermentation and maturation in French oak barriques with partial malolactic has imparted texture and complexity to the minerally grapefruit flavours of this Chardonnay from WA's south-west corner.

Located in the picturesque North Island of New Zealand, Te Mata produces a Chardonnay that has ripe stonefruit and citrus characters along with a rich and textural mouthfeel. Fermented in seasoned oak barrels to produce a creamy, rich and elegant wine.

The cool climate of the ACTs Canberra District is the perfect place to grow and produce quality Chardonnay and Lerida Estate Lake George Chardonnay is a fine example. Picked early to maintain its distinctive freshness and elegance, this delicious white has a vibrant aroma of quince, nectarine and orange zest with a hint of cashew. The palate demonstrates tangy white stone fruit and grapefruit characters with a subtle mineral undertone that adds complexity. 100% barrel fermented and matured for 11 months with regular lees stirring in French oak, this is a classic, definitive Chardonnay.

Attractive aromas of citrus and tropical fruits with hints of nougat and talc. The medium weight textural palate displays vibrant flavours of citrus fruits, dried pears and some riper tropical notes. The restrained use of French oak and wild yeast fermentation adds subtle complexity and texture to the palate which finishes with a clean mineral edge.