Chardonnay 2024
R279,00
Elgin Vintners Chardonnay expresses a distinctive sense of place – the cool, cloud-covered and secluded mountainous valley where grapes ripen slowly to produce intense, concentrated flavours
100% Chardonnay
W.O. Elgin
The 2024 harvest got off to a nervous start as we encountered a mini-heat-wave at the end of January, which resulted in some pretty severe, localised wild-fires. Thankfully, these were brought under control within a couple of days, followed by a nice downpour to quench the fires. Often, it is not the fires themselves that damage the harvests potential, it is smoke-taint. In the event of the vineyard becoming covered by smoke there is a real possibility of this smoke penetrating the skins (not to mention any residual ash that may end up in the juice and fermentations). Thankfully, the Palmiet River acted as a natural barrier and after numerous sample tests, the vineyards were declared smoke-taint-free. The rest of the harvest continued without any further weather-shocks and each varietal ripened along its desired path, all in the correct order. The Chardonnay grapes were the first to ripen and kicked off the harvest on the 9th February.
Thankfully, we picked the Chardonnay grapes at an average of around 21.3 Balling. The berries were removed from the stems and lightly crushed prior to filling the press. The grapes were pressed and separated from their skins, with the subsequent juice being sent into a stainless-steel tank at 12°C. Settled over-night and then racked into 500L barrels and a 4000L oak Foudre, the juice was allowed to warm up slowly, with the natural fermentation kicking in 2 days later. The majority of the wine was fermented using only indigenous yeast (from the vineyard), except for a very small portion of the barrels requiring a yeast inoculation towards the very end just to finish off any remaining sugar. The fermentation took just over 30 days in total. The wine was then matured on the lees in the same barrels, where about 40% went through a spontaneous Malolactic Fermentation.
This process has resulted in a medium-bodied and refreshing wine with an alcohol of 13% vol, offering a complex and layered wine with a bone-dry finish. Hints of apple and white-stone fruit give way to a zesty, orange-peel finish. The eight months maturation period on the lees in French Oak barrels, really compliments the body of the wine and the wood is superbly well-integrated. Only 8% new wood was used so as not to dominate the flavour and texture of the Chardonnay grape.
Though perfect to consume on its own as a refreshing thirst-quencher, this wine has enough depth and complexity to pair with a multitude of dishes including any fish or sea-food, white meats, garlic snails, cream and / or cheesy sauces, citrus-based desserts (e.g. lemon cheesecake!) or simply accompanied by good friends. I am even convinced this wine will convert the ABC Club (anything but Chardonnay).
Alc:13% • RS:3.1 • TA:5.5 • pH:3.4 • FSO2:20 • TSO2:125
