Cheerleading isn’t my forte. Having never been much of a pom-pom shaker. it appears that I may have to start practising some chants for New Zealand Chardonnay.
Beyond a small clutch of impressive Kiwi Chardonnays, there have long been too many disappointments in a cool climate that should be conducive to making fresh, linear and elegant Chardonnays.
But a weekend spent in Marlborough showed there has been a lot of progress made by quality-conscious producers that are looking to make their Chardonnays more complex.
Stylistically the wines appear a lot more restrained, interesting and structured. How so?
Starting in the vineyard, there are a number of factors at play: putting the right clones in the ground, older vines, and not treating Chardonnay vines like they’re Sauvignon Blanc. Picking decisions also play an important role, explains Villa Maria winemaker Jeremy McKenzie: “In the past there were probably riper picking decisions – maybe more 14 percent plus alcohols. These days I feel there’s a lot more between 13.5 and 14 percent, and winemakers are a lot more conscious of that.”
Heading to the winery, there are plenty of tools producers are using. This non-aromatic variety provides a canvas for the winemaker to paint their stylistic signature. Pressing the grapes and then settling the juice to within an inch of its life isn’t conducive to characterful, interesting wines and there’s growing use of solids in ferments plus spontaneous fermentations.
But Marcel Giesen of Giesen wines notes that you can lose some of the fruit this way: “Winemaking with full solids and particularly the trend towards natural yeast, that certainly can add a rich layer of complexity. But you have to do a trade of fruit for complexity.”
What’s more, fermentation and maturation is increasingly taking place in second fill barrels, wooden cuves, or larger oak formats to bring greater integration of wood and fruit.
Whatever the vessel, once the alcoholic fermentation is finished and the new wine has completed the malolactic fermentation, producers appear to be holding back on adding sulfur, which acts as an antioxidant and antimicrobial. But sulfur early and you ‘fix’ that buttery character (diacetyl) created by the malolactic fermentation.
McKenzie notes: “What you’re seeing here is not a lot of diacetyl left in these wines…People are more conscious of that these days and maybe they are delaying their sulfuring and allowing some savory character to come through.”
This will be bad news for some Chardonnay drinkers who love butter in their wine but I’m not one of them and boy, am I glad to see us moving away from the Lurpak.
One of the major Marmite debates in Kiwi Chardonnay at the moment is sulfides. Yes, love ‘em or hate ‘em, they are du jour. Some people say it smells like gunflint but quite frankly I’ve never smelled gunflint so I compare it to struck matches – when it gets bad it can smell like eggy farts.
A little is good, a lot is often deemed faulty but it appears most people’s threshold differs. Giesen says: “A quick way to minerality is via the sulfide road. I think the level of acceptability is what we need to get a handle on. But how much is too much? I have to confess I am a sucker for sulfites. But I still want to see fruit and I want to see the message that the vineyard had of telling rather than the yeast or the lack of nutrients [in the fermentation].”
So, after that technical run-down in the current Marlborough Chardonnay movement, let’s get down to the good stuff…
I’ve picked a bunch of Marlborough Chardonnays you should get your paws on, including one particularly Marmitey wine that you really need to make your own mind up on…
2010 Auntsfield Cob Cottage Chardonnay
A classy wine: smooth and alluring on the mid palate with a taut and linear finish. A tad shy on the nose and palate not showing a lot of obvious fruit; more on the citrus side of things. Good quality french oak nuttiness lingers long on the lengthy finish. 18.5/20 or 93/100
2011 Giesen The Fuder Chardonnay
A powerful richly aromatic style with sulfide-derived struck match and white flowers, adding an attractive layer of complexity. Supple and full-bodied. Plenty of quality oak toast too. Fresh acidity. 18/20 or 90/100
2009 Spy Vally Envoy Chardonnay
An interesting wine. Complex, sulfide-driven, linear style, offering floral and white talc aromas followed by mouthwatering lemony acidity. Oak and alcohol well integrated, creating a harmonious and attractive wine. Long length. 18/20 or 90/100
2012 Nautilus Estate Chardonnay
Restrained nose. Supple and full bodied with integrated nutty oak. Moderate intensity lacking perhaps a little concentration to make it top tier. Fresh linear acidity. 17/20 or 86/90
2011 Dog Point Chardonnay
Sulphides overpower the nose. Amazing intensity of fruit and great structure followed by firm acidity. What a wine! Unfortunately it’s undrinkable at the moment – I can’t get over the burnt match and egg reduction but come back to this in a few year’s time and if those sulfides have turned to toasty notes, it’ll be one hell of a wine. Really hard to mark: 15/20 for drinking now 18++/20 if those sulfides blow off at some point in the distant future.
