Regular readers will know that I thrill at tasting and drinking across the gamut of wine styles/varieties, but even in wine I find myself increasingly following a sense of seasonality.
The bolder reds of winter are making way for more and more white wines and I’m currently hankering for Chardonnay as it’s such a food-friendly variety yet oh so drinkable as I prepare dinner, while remaining keenly priced for its quality.
A cracking lineup today that fulfil all those qualities.
2024 Main Divide by Pegasus Bay North Canterbury Chardonnay
Rating Excellent
Expressive nose,
biscuity, nutty, ripe
peach, oak spices,
richness without being
OTT, a little gunflint
with air. Lovely fruit in
the mouth, tropical
elements like mango
join peach, yet there’s a
cooler greengage plum
underlay. Great texture
and integration offers
rewarding drinking
now, with bright acidity
bringing refreshment to
the close. Ticks all the
boxes.
www.maindivide.com
2024 McArthur Ridge Springvale Alexandra Chardonnay
Rating Excellent
Nutty aspects lead,
brown butter/caramel
influences, a green
herb-like note adds
freshness. The acidity
more evident here
(perhaps cooler
climate?), the fruit more
in the nectarine/just ripe
apricot spectrum, on a
nutty backdrop, cool
and fresh. The crispness
and juiciness to the fore
now, really bringing
refreshment to the table,
or enjoy alfresco on a
sunny day.
2024 Vavasour Awatere Valley Chardonnay
Rating Excellent
A creamy, clotted
cream influence, the
fruit dancing between
stone and tropical
fruits, a warm baguette
nuance, later a fragrant
blossom note. The
palate is vivid and
youthful, more stone
fruited now, generosity
allied with juicy
freshness. Really
appealing, bright,
vibrant palate with a
great, long finish.
There’s a piquancy
that has you licking
your lips for more.
2023 Rabbit Ranch sur lie Central Otago Chardonnay
Rating Very Good to Excellent
Perfumed and
fragrant, a
honeysuckle-like note,
stonefruits, a lightly
savoury quality.
Cooling freshness,
quite fine and elegant
rather than a buttery,
oaky, fruit bomb.
Nutty elements, a little
chalky grip adding to
the texture, with lovely
tangy, zestiness on
the close. Another
wine that while
drinking well off the
bat, also promises to
be a friend to food.
2024 Grove Mill Marlborough Chardonnay
Rating Very Good to Excellent
The nose subtle, hints
of anise and caramel,
peach, light oak
seasoning. The palate
ramps it up a notch
with clear richness
here. Ripe peach, oak
spices, savoury
nuances, double
cream, a touch of
nuttiness. Quite
generous, initially a
little warm glow on
the close that makes
way for nutty
characters as it takes
on air. In the slot to
bang open now.
2024 Te Kairanga Runholder Martinborough Chardonnay
Rating Very Good to Excellent
Hints of melon,
peach, dusty gravel,
with air stonefruits.
The palate tauter and
more linear, top notes
of cashew and
almond, while there’s
a deeper register to
the fruit now. Nice
balance and
integration, this is not
a wine of bombast,
not a big fruit bomb
but offering plentiful
interest in its
elegance. Drinking so
well already.
