2023 Clarence House Reserve Chardonnay, Cambridge

Clarence House was built in 1830 on land which was originally the market garden for the city of Hobart. Present owner David Kilpatrick first planted vines on the north-east slopes of the property in 1998. Located in the foothills  of the Meehan Ranges, halfway between Hobart and the Coal Valley, Clarence House Estate sits in a unique location atop Jurassic dolerite and basalt soils with low annual rainfall.

Entirely from a single block, utilizing a very high proportion of the prized Penfolds clone. Whole-bunch pressed, wild barrel ferment, six month élevage. A selection of the finest barrels has resulted in in a reserve bottling with new and old French oak, sourced from a combination of barriques and puncheons. Wonderfully complex, boasting citrus and peach stonefruit, tempered by judicious marriage of oak. Robust, concentrated, yet fresh and bound by impeccable structure. Will age gracefully however equally enjoyable fresh and unbridled with appropriate cuisine.

Deep, complex nose combines soft citrus scents, lime, fresh herbs, minerals and stone. Juicy, stony and penetrating, with crystalline flavours of lemon and minerals. More complex than the young-vines example, with firm, perfectly integrated acids giving the wine a very brisk character. Stony, long and precise on the aftertaste.