Aussie Whites

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Steven Spurrier - “Eileen Hardy Chardonnay is, in my view, the Grange of Australian white wines”.

98+ Points - Stuart McCloskey “A stunning bouquet offering a profusion of aromatics ranging from vanilla, lemon zest, Seville orange marmalade, wet limestone to maritime salinity and finishing with freshly grated, spicy ginger. The wine has put on some weight with a lovely silky textural feel, but far from viscous. Harmonious and exquisitely judged to be succinct. Flavours are more difficult to pin down at this stage, but one thing is certain, it’s effortless and washes across my palate with consummate ease. I love the spice, salinity – very maritime which changes with more aeration. Fascinating is the wine's development in the glass. As I mentioned in my previous notes - This would shame many white Burgundies at double the price. This is simply a beautiful Chardonnay which offers more potential for those with patience. Just magnificent and for me, the best Chardonnay in our portfolio. The value is unbelievable. I recommend drinking this superb wine from now to 2028. Sampled using Zalto Bordeaux glassware” Tasted 9 May, 2019

94 Points - James Halliday "Oak runs fractionally ahead of the fruit but it will all catch up in time. This is powerfully flavoured and textured, though importantly it also manages both an elegance and a freshness. Margaret River in a glass, chardonnay the conduit."

Winemakers notes  "The 2017 continues the remarkable consistency and quality that is PIERRO Chardonnay. More aromatic than usual with hints of apple, melon and butterscotch. The palate is delicate and intense with length and precision. A wine that will build complexity with age and will reward cellaring."

97 Points - James Halliday

The wine lives up to its reputation as one of Australia's greatest chardonnays, and you wonder why it isn't more frequently mentioned in dispatches. The answer is at least partly due to the very small amounts judged by Petaluma to be up to the strict standards set. Grapefruit leads the superb flavours of the palate, white peach in close attendance. The acidity is precise, the oak merely a means to an end.

93 Points - Stuart McCloskey

Less intense than both the ’02 and ’07, however the palate is well-balanced on the entry with fine citrus lemon, grapefruit and just a hint of spice. Good weight and quite linear towards the finish but great persistency. Drinking now.

97+ Points Stuart McCloskey 

Sharply focused, linear with a vibrancy which I wasn’t expecting. The floral character comes to the fore which compliments the nashi pear, peach, melon and suggestion of jasmine brilliantly. The palate is expansive with swathes of buttered citrus fruits underpinned with a core of minerals. I’ll be brutally honest, I was expecting a voluptuous Barossa bombshell. Instead, I received an unexpected balancing act between litheness and precision which is extremely impressive. This is one of those rare wines which floats on the palate but delivers to every millimetre.  Drinking beautifully now (decant for 20 mins) but will cellar for 8-10 years." 

97+ Points - Stuart McCloskey “The wine demands some aeration and reveals a crystalline, mineral-driven bouquet with nashi pear, white flowers, oatmeal and a whiff of smoky sulphide. The palate is certainly complex with flavours ranging from stonefruit, lemon peel and touches of anise. Concentrated but at the same time supremely measured and seamless. The palate offers a lovely glossy texture and is incredibly satisfying. Flavours expand from citrus notes, limestone, smoked almond to more oatmeal. Everything is kept in check with a healthy wash of acidity. A wine of immense potential and will only improve with more cellaring (3-8 years). I love this. Served using Zalto Bordeaux glassware”. Our Wine of the Week - 26 April

97 Points - James Halliday  "Hand-picked, whole-bunch pressed, cloudy juice wild-fermented in French oak (40% new), matured for 12 months. It's exceptionally fresh and pure, white peach and nectarine at its core. Roasted cashew and citrussy acidity dance around the core, creating a very long and crisp finish."

96 Points - James Halliday "Gleaming straw-green; in the year of its birth the wine received 94 points (Sept), and, as anticipated, has developed superbly. Even now, its laser-like citrus fruit and echoes of honey has years to go, building yet greater complexity along the way."

95 Points - Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front  "From a high density planting of chardonnay on an exposed cote at Geelong. It’s so settled and so pure. It pleases from the outset and all the way along the line but it really sparks up as it passes through the finish. Grapefruit, white peach, lime spider and a mass of crackly spice notes. It’s not a showy wine, it has no need to be, but it’s not low key either. It’s like old money in that sense; it’s not gaudy but it still tastes rich."

Exclusive to The Vinorium

97 Points - James Halliday "A tiny 0.37ha interplanted with Bernard/Dijon and Gin Gin clones on south-facing deep silver grey sands. Wild fermented in new and used oak. Pale straw-green; highly fragrant/perfumed, palate fine and intense; minerally aftertaste. 13% alc, screwcap. Drink to 2030.

Acclaimed Margaret River winemaker Julian Langworthy and wife Alana are turning heads with their own boutique label, Nocturne. This Chardonnay is their take on the famous regional style, with great success. Born and raised in the region Julian has developed close relationships with some of Margaret River's finest growers, with this Chardonnay coming from a single vineyard in Treeton, planted to some of the region's best-suited clones. In the hands of Julian, this fruit absolutely sings. It's a polished version of Margaret River Chardonnay with ample weight whilst maintaining and elegant balance. This is an exciting new addition to the Margaret River Chardonnay landscape.

Exclusive to The Vinorium

97 Points - James Halliday "The 'lucky' 7th vintage, whole-bunch pressed, fermented in French barriques (50% new), 100% mlf, matured for 18 months. The brilliant straw-green hue says there's something special here, for it's incredibly detailed, precise and balanced, the three spears of perfect varietal fruit, high quality oak and acidity all unsheathed, but not required to be thrown. Only 88 dozen made."

95 Points - Campbell Mattinson "Single vineyard chardonnay from the southern reaches of the region. Stunning chardonnay. Not so much idiosyncratic as likely to polarise. It’s rich with custardy lactose character, combined with honeysuckle and toffee apples, though there’s also white peach, flint, woodsmoke and citrus. It’s rich and cutting at once, matchsticky and seamless too. It’s quite outstanding, so long as you’re into this kind of thing."