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Chardonnay - 2005 - Cloudy Bay Wines
Ref: A126405
Cloudy Bay Wines

Aromas of poached pear and grapefruit are beautifully complemented by a savoury complexity reminiscent of roasted cashews and oatmeal. The combination of "hands-off" winemaking and vibrant Marlborough fruit delivers a rich, textural palate with concentrated cirus and fig flavours, seamlessly integrated oak, and a persistent finish.

The grapes for this wine – predominantly the low yielding Mendoza clone with a lesser quantity of UCD6 and newer Burgundian clones – were harvested from nine estate and grower vineyards located in the Wairau and Brancott Valleys of Marlborough. Soils vary from the silty gravels found in Rapaura, to the fine silty loams of Renwick, and the aged alluvial gravels of the Brancott Valley. The vineyards are planted at a density of 1,850 vines per hectare and most vines are trained to the vertical shoot position (VSP) trellis system.

Cool weather during the spring of 2003 culminated in a frost alert in the Southern Valleys on November 18th - exactly 12 months to the day of the severe frost in 2002. Helicopters were on stand-by to mitigate frost damage to tender vine shoots, with minimal damage occuring only in the most sheltered vineyard sites. Very warm and dry conditions during December and January ensured even flowering and desirable fruit-set. An unusually cool and cloudy February was redeemed by mild sunny weather during March and April, and complete physiological ripeness was achieved. Although the season was protracted - and at times precarious - new state-of-the-art fruit receival facilties enabled all varieties to be harvested with great efficiency at optimum ripeness.

The Chardonnay harvest commenced on 26th March and finished on 20th April. Lower than average rainfall through March and April combined with a long ripening season helped to deliver exceptional flavours. Fruit composition averaged 24.0 Brix, pH 3.18 and acid 10.0/l.

The majority of the crop was hand picked and loaded directly into tank presses; the remainder was machine-harvested into small bins, and then loaded and pressed the same way. The juice was then racked into stainless steel tanks or oak barrels. The tank portion was inoculated with a cultured yeast strain, and then transferred to barrel once fermentation had begun. The remainder was allowed to ferment using indigenous yeast strains. All batches were fermented in French oak barrels, a low proportion of which were new, and most of the wine went through malolactic fermentation. The components were blended after one full year in barrel, and the blend remained on yeast lees for a further period prior to a light fining for clarification, then bottling in July 2005 (under screwcap). Final analysis shows an alcohol of 14.0v/v, pH 3.36 and acid of 6.9g/l.

Price: £17.92
Including VAT at 17.5%

Qty:

New Zealand (South Island)	2005	Medium Bodied
Chardonnay	White	Chicken/Turkey/Salmon
Cloudy Bay Wines	Medium Dry	Drink Now

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