2023 Heritage Chardonnay
"A true translation of our plots with power yet elegance, finely detailed like Haute-Couture!"
In Margaret River, considered one of Australia’s premium chardonnay growing regions, Cape Mentelle creates wines of plush texture, depth and power, yet balanced with a fine frame of acidity. This Reserve Chardonnay reflects Chapman Brook and Crossroads, our two southern Margaret River vineyards. Both sites have wonderful expressive personalities that complement each other beautifully and represent a combination of both our past and present. From careful site selection many years ago through to refined and innovative viticulture and winemaking practices today. Bringing them together is a joy, creating one of the finest expressions of our unique terroir.
Nose
Confidence and class coming through with white flowers, white pepper and sea salt, evolving into ultra-fine pastry apple tart and bitter almond extract.
Palate
Poise and precision on the palate, it is dynamic, delicate and vibrant all at once. Many intriguing layers of complexity with citrus blossom, candied lemon, macadamia nut and yellow grapefruit all intricately balanced with the mineral aspects of wet stone and gun flint. Beautiful grip from the crunchy phenolics hold the backbone of this seamless wine.
Blend
100% chardonnay
Cellaring
15 years
Food Pairing Notes
Roast Dhufish fillet with lemon cream sauce.
Pappardelle with mixed wild mushrooms.
Salmon Gravlax with dill and sea salt.
The Vineyard
Chardonnay is grown on our two southern vineyards, about 15 minutes south of the Margaret River township. The two sites differ greatly in terms of aspect, soil profile, temperature extremes and rainfall. These conditions result in a variation of fruit profile which highlights the vineyard site, our region and the seasonal conditions each year. During the season our focus is to ensure good canopy growth while allowing air flow and sunlight in. This naturally reduces disease risk and encourages good fruit set in early summer. The majority of our chardonnay blocks are hand harvested in the cooler early morning conditions. Our aim is to produce fruit that showcases a great expression of site, with bright natural acidity, depth of flavour and purity of fruit. The 2023 season started with a mild spring leading into a dry and calm summer. Grapevine ripening continued steadily throughout, with harvest commencing mid-February. Overall, we experienced another beautiful Margaret River growing season.
Winemaking
Hand-picked with “one plot one batch” approach, the chardonnay fruit was cooled over night before being whole bunch pressed and the juice was transferred to barrel, with all the solids, for wild fermentation. The French oak selection focused on enhancing the fruit personalities of each plot, with 43% of the barriques being new. The wines were left unsulphured for several weeks post-ferment and matured on lees for 10 months, with a stirring regime monitored by tasting to build texture and refine structure. Individual barrels were selected from the best batches to produce a blend representing the finest expression of the season, in a way that allows each individual block to shine.
Analysis
13.4% alcohol
8.29 g/l total acidity
3.08 pH
Suitable for vegans
