Chardonnay 2012
Tasting Notes
In many ways this is an old-fashioned Chardonnay with its generous oak, stone fruit and melon characters. However, by preventing the wine from going through 100% malolactic fermentation, we have retained the wines’ natural acidity, to make a tighter style, a world away from those big buttery jobs of the late 80’s and 90’s. There is a complex nuttiness (cashew?) on the nose as well as a trace of citrus through the wine, underpinned with lovely oak and wonderful length.
Vintage
Vintage 2012 was condensed into about 8 weeks from go to whoa which meant we had finished crushing all grapes by the end of March. Generally this feat would only be accomplished by the middle to end of April. Yields across all varieties were considerably down on average (from 15-40% in some varieties), but quality is looking very promising for both reds and whites. We had cool conditions up until the end of February then some rain, which did not affect things too much (see vintage 2011)as the whites were already picked and safely in the winery. Phew.
Winemaking
The Bosworth Chardonnay is a spoilt only child and always gets the very best of everything: the very best French oak barrels (40% new) and the lightest of hands in fermentation and handling. The grapes were pressed straight to barrel after picking and underwent a natural ferment. The wine was left on high solids to allow it time to develop complexity and depth, as well as to scavenge any lurking oxygen in the wine – allowing the wine to sit on high solids acts as an effective anti-oxidant. The chardonnay was bottled straight from barrel, with only about 10% undergoing malolactic fermentation as we want to retain some nice crisp green apple acidity.
Reviews
The Wine Advocate #211 February 2014 Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Scented of ripe peaches, honeydew melon and spicy oak with suggestions of ginger and butterscotch, the light to medium-bodied 2012 Chardonnay opens with a refreshing line of racy acidity to cut through a good intensity of stone fruit and spice flavors. It finishes with lingering oak nuances. Drink it now to 2017+.
88 points
Other Vintages
Technical Details
Vineyards: Denton's and Chanticleer
Picking Date: 3rd, 7th, 9th and 16th February 2012
Bottling Date: 26th November 2012
pH Level: 3.17
Total Acidity: 6.83
Alc/Vol: 13.0%