Terroir-istes International - Australia-Victoria, Upper Yarra, Beechworth, Macedon Chardonnay

A deep dive into the Upper Yarra Valley, Beechworth and Macedon Ranges Chardonnay, within Victoria

• 2015 Mac Forbes Chardonnay Woori Yallock 90 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley

  (Tasted Blind): A light to mid-yellow with a touch of cordite and ammonia reduction on the nose, then savoury notes of oatmeal, lemon juice, Gala apple flesh and dried peaches. With a wonderful poise to the entry, the wine has verve, intense city and directness and is balanced by crisp and fresh lemon juice acidity that reverberates. Linear, long and flowing without necessarily being deep, this is a delicious wine, even though the acidity is pretty piercing!

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• 2017 Seville Estate Chardonnay Reserve 91 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley

  (Tasted Blind): Light yellow in colour; the nose has some struck match and lots of mineral, chalk, smoke, lemon blossom and orange skin. With an athletic vibrancy to the entry, the wine is elegant if a little skinny, and whilst there is some richness, it is quite restrained. This bright wine has a crisp and precise acid edge with vivacious citrus notes and some toasty oak. The wine is quite streaky or lacy and lacks a little flesh, so it is more of a lean long-distance runner!
  Grapes are sourced from a colder south-facing site. Soils are volcanic; wine is matured in oak for 10 months, 30% new.

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• 2017 Oakridge Chardonnay 864 Funder & Diamond Vineyard Drive Block 94 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley

  (Tasted Blind): A light to mid yellow with a vibrant bouquet of struck match, lemon zest, slate, some toast and white peach.
  The entry has an impressive depth and is filled with freshly grated lemon zest, toasty oak, slate, and nectarine. Creamy textured wine is linear, full-bodied, and classy. Well-balanced, some argued it was a little lean and grippy. I felt it was pithy, possibly positively phenolic, but seamlessly integrated. Closes with grapefruit and green apples on the finish. Complex this is a classic reductive struck match style done well.

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• 2018 Giant Steps Chardonnay Applejack Vineyard 89 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley

  (Tasted Blind): It is light to mid-yellow with cling peach, apple, and some cantaloupe melon aromas. I got a little filo pastry and spice in the background.
  An engaging palate that is vibrant, rich, and intense, egged on by an energetic acidity. Notes of apple, key lime and peach manifest in the mid-palate, and the structure is defined and tight. However, it also felt chewy, with a chalky phenolic, making the wine lean and curtailing the finish. Closes with green and sharper notes with mineral and saline, sea kelp.
  Location: Gladysdale
  Elevation: 320 metres
  Aspect: East facing
  Size: 12.5 hectares
  Planted: 1997
  Soil type: Grey / brown clay loam

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• 2016 Giant Steps Chardonnay Lusatia Park Vineyard 93 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley

  (Tasted Blind): A light to mid-yellow hue with a wide-ranging array of scents. Ripe peach and nectarine is accented by tart grapefruit and chalk and enriched by a base of orange blossom and apricot flesh.
  Great line and length on entry, the wine is linear with zesty lemon, grapefruit pith and yellow apple that accent slowly building (postive) phenolic. The wine has an invigoratingly rasping acidity that feels cleansing and conjures up images of orchard fruits ripening in the sun on rocky terrain!

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• 2016 Giant Steps Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard 92 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley

  (Tasted Blind): Light yellow in colour, the wine starts a little reductive before revealing plenty of lemon, mineral and pineapple underpinned by almond and brioche. Further opening shows some lemongrass, making for an intriguing nose. This followed through to the palate, where the wine showed elegance, sauve and complexity. A bevvy of grapefruit, lemon, and pineapple are dusted with spice, while the wine has a sharp acidity. The acid is sharp and acquires a stony edge that, for some, felt too phenolic. Very much a linear wine, I felt the wine was fleet-footed and yet had many moving parts. Edgy!
  Location: Tarrawarra
  Elevation: 100 metres
  Aspect: North, south and east facing
  Size: 8.5 hectares
  Planted: 1988
  Soil type: Grey clay loam

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• 2017 Giant Steps Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard 94 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley

  (Tasted Blind): A light yellow hue, the aromas unfurl with oatmeal, white peach and orange. The entry carries this forward with juicy fruits - nectarine, pear and peach - dancing alongside grapefruit, matcha tea and lemon - and a dash of spice. Quite fleshy, the wine maintains a light aromatic through the mid-palate and an underlying richness and creaminess of oatmeal. With some warmth from the alcohol, the wine retains good freshness and weight. A fabulous wine with complex nuances, this lingered long on the finish.
  Location: Gruyere
  Elevation: 130 - 210 metres
  Aspect: North facing
  Size: 30 hectares
  Planted: 1997
  Soil type: Grey clay loam

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• 2014 Bindi Chardonnay Kostas Rind 95 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Macedon Ranges

  (Tasted Blind): A light yellow hue with a pure lifted fragrance of lemon rind and grapefruit. An intense, poised, and delineated wine, the wine strides forward with its zesty lemon and lime acidity, creamy texture, and the fruit bowl of Forelle pear and spiced nectarine gently rubbed by pinenut and seashell. This is a detailed wine with a satisfying length and a pithy finish. Layered, this is an eloquent expression of Chardonnay where the balance between purity and some restraint, fruit richness and vivid appeal is seamless.

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• 2015 Sorrenberg Chardonnay 91 Points

  Australia, Victoria, North East, Beechworth

  (Tasted Blind): A mid-yellow hue, the wine has a ripe nose with yellow fruits, oatmeal, toasty oak, stone fruits and some pineapple. There was a touch of caramel or singed pineapple too - almost funky.
  The entry is full-bodied wine with breadth and lively acidity. Rich is the first impression confirmed by the creamy oatmeal and toasty lees, but the mid-palate unleashes more minerals, grapefruit, and crushed stone that seem to mitigate some of the oak and generous alcohol. The wine improved, and the finish was pleasantly long with a mineral angularity that gave an edge but wasn't too pointy.
  Returning after the tasting at dinner (45 minutes), I did notice the funky note had given way to a slight volatility, but I will keep my original score.

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• 2005 Giaconda Chardonnay Estate Vineyard 89 Points

  Australia, Victoria, North East, Beechworth

  (Tasted Blind): A mid-gold colour suggests some age heads towards a bouquet of yellow fruits, oatmeal, fynbos honey, nougat and orange blossom. A mint quality hangs overhead! The full-bodied entry is marked by an invigorating, persistent acidity, excellent precision and depth. Rich with notes of orange segments and touch of mineral. With layers of flavour and a reassuring gait, the wine begins to dry out on the finish yet still holds relatively well for its age.
  Wild ferment in barrel, 50% new, matured for 18 months.

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• 2017 Giaconda Chardonnay Estate Vineyard 94 Points

  Australia, Victoria, North East, Beechworth

  (Tasted Blind): A light golden hue. Intense notes of stuck flint, cordite, smoke, wet stones, ripe yellow peach and nectarine.
  A super precise entry with concentrated fruits and a linear progression heightened by a chiselled frame from its mineral-edged mouth-cleansing acidity. An assertive wine, the mid-palate offers juicy lemon and orange, oatmeal, toasty oak, leafy herbs, and stone fruits. To be fair, the oak is quite noticeable, but the wine has a sturdy platform that should allow some time for the oak to integrate. I loved the array of fruits, giving some layers, and the finish was extremely long.

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• 2017 Santolin Wines Chardonnay Gladysdale Vineyard 87 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley

  (Tasted Blind): Notes of flint and mineral, white peach and a dusting of spices. Not that much depth, the wine has a pleasant gait lively acidity with a little lees creaminess. Lemon with stone fruits give some flesh underscored by a chalky edge and with a little phenolics on the finish. Medium long. Good.

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• 2018 Santolin Wines Chardonnay Gladysdale Vineyard 88 Points

  Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Yarra Valley

  (Tasted Blind): A riper fruit expression than the previous wine with more intensity and richer riper yellow cling peach and orange. Full-bodied, the wine enters quite sweet with a zesty orange acidity. Some lemons and buttered popcorn (MLF?) continue to the medium finish. With better depth of flavour, the wine is drinking nicely. Slightly generous on the finish.

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