Bouldevines Vineyard Chardonnay

Complex and enticing grapefruit, citrus and white peach characters are complemented by struck-flint, spice and vanilla. In the glass the wine is loaded with texture. Stone fruit and citrus are underpinned by a flinty mineral flavour and toasty complexity. The wine has great balance and length and will reward cellaring for the next five years.

WINEMAKING

The 2023 growing season started with above average bunch numbers in most districts in Marlborough. Unsettled and cooler weather over flowering resulted in loose and lighter bunches, with the net effect of producing average yields across most varieties and regions. The weather around the time of veraison was unstable, and at times threatening. We just missed out on the destruction of the cyclone that hit the east coast of the North Island. The weather then settled into a pattern reminiscent of the harvests in the early 2000s. The nights were particularly cool, and this helped to arrest any small levels of botrytis that had started in the early unsettled weather. It was a vintage where patience was rewarded and those who waited harvested fully ripe grapes with concentrated flavours and classic acidity. The fruit for this wine was handselected and hand-picked, then taken straight to the winery and whole-bunch pressed. After pressing, the juice was transferred to barrel, including a selection of older and new oak puncheons and barriques. A total of 30% new oak was used in the final blend. The wine completed wild fermentation and full malolactic fermentation in barrel, before aging for 10 months.

2023 Tasting Note  2020 Tasting Note