Chardonnay 2008

Tasting notes
The Paritua Chardonnay is refined, elegant and smooth, with a harmonious and well-balanced composition. The texture of the palate is velvety, enhanced with the refined use of oak. Aromas of papaya, mango and passionfruit are complemented by subtle yeast notes. Enjoy with the rich flavours of seafood and cream sauces, wild mushroom risotto or fresh oysters. This wine will age gracefully for up to five years.

Viticulture
Grapes for Paritua Chardonnay are grown along the Paritua Stream on red metal soils in the 'Triangle’ region of Hawkes Bay. The flavour profile of Chardonnay is highly influenced by sun exposure and cropping levels, so selected rows were manually leaf plucked and bunch thinned to achieve excellent ripeness and good acidity. Premium fruit selection was paramount, thus hand harvesting was utilised to ensure quality.

Winemaking
After chilling overnight in the winery, whole bunches of handpicked Chardonnay grapes were transferred to the basket press. A very gentle process of juice extraction took place with the resulting juice quantities put to barrel. Approximately 60% of the barrels were fermented by naturally occurring yeasts to add complexity to the palate. During the barrel maturation phase the wine was racked off lees once. A selection of the yeast lees was chosen and returned to barrel with the clarified wine. Periodic stirring of the wine adds a broadness to the palate which was enhanced by 30% malolactic conversion (in barrel). Total time in barrel was approximately 10 months, after which the wine was blended and bottled in January 2009.

HARVEST: 2008
216 CASES MADE
9 BARRIQUES
13.5% ALCOHOL/VOLUME
TA: 6.9 GRAMS/LITRE
pH: 3.35
CLOSURE: STELVIN LUX +