Personalised Man O'War Valhalla Chardonnay 2022 13.84% 750ml

Personalised Man O'War Valhalla Chardonnay 2022 13.84% 750ml

Tasting Notes

Aroma
Valhalla Chardonnay 2022 offers intense savoury aromas on the firs pour with brioche, cashew, and hazelnut over ripe stone fruit characters with a final hint of green smoke.

Palate
The aromas shift seamlessly onto the palate which shows the richness of the vintage, well tamed by the acidity and finished with a salted caramel character confirming the influence of the Pacific Ocean on the viticulture. A beautifully balanced wine, complex and rewarding, a classic Valhalla Chardonnay.

Vinification
All the fruit is hand harvested but then macerated to the press to increase the volume of solids in the juice. The juice is left to initiate a wild ferment on full solids, quickly being transferred to puncheon at the onset. Fast ferments are favoured and then ageing on gross lees right through to blending. No malolactic fermentation or lees stirring occurs.

Vintage notes
Vintage 2022 was a near perfect season with excellent conditions throughout the year with one slight hiccup being some salt damage to the leaf canopy in the vineyards due to a large storm in early February putting some pressure on the Chardonnay. To preserve the integrity of the fruit and to give the wine an element of refinement in a hot year we carried out an early pick from our elevated hilltop vineyards which gives a fresh crisp edge to the wine. With our more sheltered sites we were able to push the fruit a little riper to provide richness and riper flavours

PH
3.23

Acidity
8.3 g/L

Variety: Chardonnay
Region: Waiheke Island, New Zealand
Winemaker: Duncan McTavish