2007 Brightside Nelson Chardonnay
Winemaking notes
The fruit for this wine was sourced entirely from the estate vineyards in Brightwater, with 75% from the original home block and 25% from the more recently acquired Livingston Road vineyard. It was 100% hand picked with an average harvest Brix of 23.0.
Crushed and destemmed before gentle pressing yielded clean juice, most of which was then fermented in stainless steel with European oak beans. A 10% portion however was fermented and matured in French oak barriques for added complexity and this portion was allowed to go through MLF in the spring. The wine was then aged sur lie in tank and barrel for 10 months prior to final filtration and bottling under screwcap in May 2008. A light isinglass fining was used to polish the wine and aid clarification.
Wine analysis
Residual sugar 1gL
Titratable acidity 7.6g/L pH 3.49
Alcohol 12.5 %
Comments
This is a vibrant citrussy Nelson Chardonnay with lots of grapefruit, baked lemons and sizzled butter flavours. Lees aging has imparted a creamy texture and the aromas of fresh baking, complemented by toasty vanilla oak.
