2019 Piccadilly Valley Chardonnay
- Cellar Door
- $40.00
- Case
- $240.00
- Varieties
- Chardonnay
- Vintage
- 2019
- Country
- Australia
- Region
- Piccadilly Valley
- Alcohol
- 13.5%
- Bottle size
- 750 mL
- Drinking Window
- 2020 - 2030
- Description
A limited release chardonnay from two selected Piccadilly Valley sites. Ferment was sparked by indigenous yeasts and the wine aged in Burgundian oak (predominantly puncheons) both old and new for eight months.
- Nose
White peach and fresh green apple along with Jasmin, Crème Brulee and a hint of spice from French oak.
- Mouth
Yellow peach and stone fruits are carried across the palate by a mouth-watering acid drive. A hint of lemon pith phenolics provides the wine with lovely texture.
- Growing Conditions
Cold conditions at flowering resulted in low grape yields in the Adelaide Hills and through-out South Australia in 2019. However, the high altitude of the Piccadilly Valley ensures late flowering and the spring of 2018 provided a warm window late in the season bringing average yields to the sub-region. Quality was excellent owing to dry conditions which meant there were no disease or pest issues and both batches of chardonnay showed excellent concentration and flavour.
- Food Pairing
Goolwa Pipi’s with a fresh garlic and butter sauce.
- Attached Files
Professional Reviews
At $35 chardonnay, this is spot on. The $35 chardonnay price point needs some flavour, some fireworks, not too much, not that flinty firework stuff, it needs crisp acidity for warm days but flavour for cooler ones. It needs to be BBQ friendly as it does present on Super Yachts to dress up a cheap host paying too much for the rental. It has to punch loud but with restraint. It needs stone fruits met by the faintest honey butter character. It needs a hit of flavour and then to thin out into tangy freshness. The thinness drops the impression for a critic but the freshness works for the sauvignon blanc/riesling lover shoehorned into a chardonnay on Friday night drinks in the office. There’s glide and faint oak for the fancy set, nougat-and-cinnamon bun for the regular folk. It does all this, does it well, tastes delicious, refreshes and delights. It doesn’t deliver a hell of a lot of complexity, but it does cool and crisp and flavour spot on.
The Wine Front - Professional
92
"This has a gently flinty nose that is focused around lemons and white peaches with fresh, nutty oak. The palate is fresh and lively with peach sorbet-like texture and bright, zesty acidity on the finish. Drink or hold. Screw cap."
JamesSuckling.com - Professional
92
"It’s downright unreasonable that Ashton Hills, with its over-large tennis court vineyard in the Piccadilly Valley, should be able to make stunning Pinot Noirs (Reserve, Estate and varietal, contract-grown), Chardonnay and a Riesling to die for. The Chardonnay is matured for 9 months in new and used French oak."
2021 Wine Companion - Professional
95
"At $35 chardonnay, this is spot on. The $35 chardonnay price point needs some flavour, some fireworks, not too much, not that flinty firework stuff, it needs crisp acidity for warm days but flavour for cooler ones. It needs to be BBQ friendly as it does present on Super Yachts to dress up a cheap host paying too much for the rental. It has to punch loud but with restraint. It needs stone fruits met by the faintest honey butter character. It needs a hit of flavour and then to thin out into tangy freshness. The thinness drops the impression for a critic but the freshness works for the sauvignon blanc/riesling lover shoehorned into a chardonnay on Friday night drinks in the office. There’s glide and faint oak for the fancy set, nougat-and-cinnamon bun for the regular folk. It does all this, does it well, tastes delicious, refreshes and delights. It doesn’t deliver a hell of a lot of complexity, but it does cool and crisp and flavour spot on."
The Wine Front - Professional
92
