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
