Chardonnay 2009
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- Region:
- Adelaide Hills
- Harvest Date:
- 16th March 2009
- Date Bottled:
- 14th December 2009
- Alcohol:
- 13.1%
- Winemaker:
- Michael Downer, Daryl Catlin
- Vineyard:
- The Murdoch Hill Vineyard stands 512m high in the cool climate Adelaide Hills near the township of Oakbank.
- Vine Positioning: A predominately north facing slope, maximizes sunlight and facilitates ripening.
- Soil Structure: Sandy loam over medium clay subsoils.
- Canopy Management: Vertical Shoot Positioning (VSP), canopy trimming
and spur pruning.
- Vintage:
- The 2009 vintage was characterised by a steady and long ripening period, it was almost a perfect vintage. This allowed for exceptional flavour
development and helped to retain the grapes natural acidity.
- Style & Tasting Notes:
- Our aim was to produce the best possible Chardonnay that highlights the unique characteristics of our estate. This starts in the vineyard where we shoot and bunch thinned to ensure balanced vines, which produce concentrated fruit. After hand harvesting,we chilled the bunches in cold storage at 2 degrees for several days, before whole bunch pressing straight into the barrel. Using only French oak we let the juice ferment naturally, with malolactic fermentation softening the natural high acidity. The wine in the barrels had regular lees stirring to impart texture and length. Our low yielding vines produced pristine fruit, with wild fermentation imparting complexity and regular lees stirring has provided texture and length to this wine.
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