Personalised Swinging Bridge Caldwell Lane Chardonnay 2023 12.7% 750ml

Personalised Swinging Bridge Caldwell Lane Chardonnay 2023 12.7% 750ml

Tasting Notes

Appearance
Clear, pale lemon.

Aroma
Ripe stone fruit and green apple with a touch of vanilla.

Palate
Medium-bodied, luscious stone fruit and melon. Seamlessly integrated creamy vanilla oak. Lingering finish.

Winemakers comments
Our Single Vineyard Series represents the pinnacle of the Swinging Bridge range. Made when the vintage allows, we showcase only the best parcels of fruit from our two Orange sites. Situated at 890m elevation and 4km west of our Cellar Door, our Caldwell Lane Vineyard consistently proves itself to be Orange’s premier Chardonnay site, producing wines of remarkable flavour intensity, complexity, and longevity. The fruit for our 2023 Caldwell Lane Chardonnay is sourced from two distinct blocks: Block A, a flat site with nutrient-rich soils, and Block D, a northwest-facing block with a rocky shelf and well-draining soils. This combination ensures both resilience and excellence from each vintage.

Vinification
The fruit is handpicked then immediately transported to the winery and pressed to tank, where some limited settling is undertaken for 24 hours. The juice is then racked to barrel with some solids and left to ferment, with the wines being sulfured upon completion. The barrels consist of 20% new hogsheads and puncheons, with the rest varying up to 5 years of age. The wine is held in barrel for 10 months and initially stirred every couple of weeks, gradually decreasing frequency over time, until the right texture is achieved across each individual barrel. The barrels are then tasted individually, with the best selected to become our Caldwell Lane Chardonnay.

Vintage notes
The 2023 vintage began with abnormally cool and wet conditions from September through to December. These low temperatures saw a late bud burst leading to some low bud initiation and small bunches across the region. These conditions lead to diligent efforts in our vineyards to open up the fruit zone via extensive leaf plucking, thinning and trimming. The second half of the vintage saw a turn of events with above average temperatures for January, February and March allowing our Chardonnay to reach optimal ripeness whilst retaining beautiful natural acids from the cooler start to the vintage.

PH
3.28

Acidity
8.53 g/L

Country: Australia
Region: Orange
Vintage: 2023
Variety: Chardonnay
Alcohol volume: 12.7
Closure: Screwcap
Volume: 750
Weight: 1.3167kg
Wine style: White (Medium Bodied Oaked)