Chardonnay 2007

Vintage

Isabel Wines

Tasting Note

Tightly structured flavours, fairly pronounced straw-yellow colour, crispy and bright with soft dryness and nutty bouquet. Concentration of fresh fruit, toasty oak with firm, but ripe acidity. Notes of citrus and green apple finish.  Elegant floral notes as well nose honey palate.

The 2007 vintage has a sweet, balanced mouth feeling through well-integrated acidity highlighting a natural complexity.

Accolades

“Very attractive Chardonnay with intense, mouth-filling sweet fruit flavours. Tree fruits such as peach and nectarine are flattered by subtle oak, bready yeast lees and some toasty bottle development. Very impressive.”
Bob Campbell, MW, BobsWineReviews.com, April 2011

Top 100 New Release feature running in the August/September issue of Gourmet Traveller Magazine.

Food Match

Great with a creamy chicken or braised pork with onions.

Buy This Wine

Isabel Vineyard Chardonnay 2007

Further Vintage Reports & Tasting notes

Vineyard
Isabel Estate Block 1, Rows 36-74
Block 2, Rows 1-24
Block 3, Rows 20-41, 62-84 & 97-153

Variety
Chardonnay Clones: Mendoza
UCD 15 and RUA 1
15, B95, 2123 and 8021

Harvest Date
28th March – 13th Aprill 2007

Bottling Date
10th March 2008

It is always interesting to taste the fruit just prior to harvest from the different clones of Chardonnay we have planted. The two cultivars that impress the most are B95 and 8021, both of these tend to ripen and develop great flavours on a consistent basis in our cool climate location.

In most years, our temperature range, measured in growing degree days, is somewhere between Chablis and Mersault. However, other influences in the Terrior ‘equation’, either environmental or human, result in a wine with its own unique Marlborough characteristics. We aim for this wine to express the power of good fruit  – without being fruity.

- Mike Tiller

As is tradition at Isabel, our Chardonnay was hand-picked and gently whole bunch pressed. A portion was transferred into Steel tanks for fermentation, then into French oak barrels. The other portion was fermented in second and third year French oak barrels using different strains of yeast. Both were stirred regularly while ageing for over 12 months. Twenty percent of the barrels underwent Malolactic fermentation while being closely monitored.

Chardonnay was fermented in separate batches in an effort to highlight flavour diversity of colonal character and thereby enhance complexity. A number of coopers were used, after regular batonage, the wine was taken out of oak after 12 months to make the final ‘assemblage’. Already showing outstanding length. This should be a long-living wine.

- Patricia Miranda

Harvest Analysis
Brix: 22 – 25
pH: 3.2-3.4
TA: 6.5 – 7.5 g/l

Wine Analysis
13.9% Alcohol
6.3g/l Titratable acidity
2.0g/l Residual sugar