{"product_id":"chardonnay-2023","title":"Chardonnay 2023","description":"\u003cp\u003eElegant and poised, our Chardonnay 2023 reveals a creamy textural display of white peach, melon and citrus, underpinned by fine minerality and a fresh, balanced acidity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eProduced in a limited release of 112 dozen bottles, this beautifully composed Chardonnay combines richness and finesse, with subtle oak and lees complexity adding depth to its long, focused finish.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c!-- split --\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003eTasting Notes\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith a whisper of pale gold in the glass, this elegant Chardonnay opens with aromas of white peach and red apple, layered with subtle cashew, vanilla and fine lees complexity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe palate balances creamy texture with fresh peach, melon and citrus notes, framed by fine acidity and very fine tannins. A distinctive mineral character runs through the wine, with subtle saline, clay and sandstone notes adding further complexity and length.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePoised and beautifully balanced, this is a refined Chardonnay with impressive focus and a long, mineral finish. It pairs particularly well with seafood, fish, chicken and pork, and is best served at around 12°C.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003eAccolades\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCameron Douglas MS:\u003c\/strong\u003e 94 pts – Excellent\u003cbr\u003e\"A complete wine with aromas and flavours of white peach and red apple, there’s a finesse of lees and frame of oak. A satin-cream touch on the palate with a cashew nut and gentle vanilla and fine lees complexities. An intriguing wine too with reminders of earth with a clay and sandstone saline echoing through the palate. Very fine tannins and medium+ acid line this wine is in perfect balanced and is well suited to suited to food, or on its own. Best service temperature is around 12 Celsius. Best drinking from day of purchase through 2030.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003eIn the Vineyard\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAn early, although uneven budburst, gave us a long flowering period this vintage, something experienced across many of New Zealand’s grape growing regions. Veraison (colour change and softening of the berries) was also early, with all the vines netted in early January.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOur vineyard team did their usual meticulous job of creating an open vine canopy, removing excess foliage by hand to encourage air movement, help dry the fruit and allow sunlight penetration. We are continuing to see the benefits of many years of applying organic soil health-enhancing products, producing healthier vines that are better able to withstand disease pressure.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLike much of the North Island, we experienced one of the most challenging vintages in our history. A mild but very wet winter in 2022 saturated the soils and limited machinery access to the vineyard. January and February then brought the Auckland floods, followed by the heavy rain and strong winds of Cyclone Gabrielle in mid-February.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCareful vineyard management allowed us to closely monitor fruit condition and ripeness, with the Chardonnay hand harvested on 27 February. Across the vineyard, yields for the 2023 vintage were approximately 35% lower than the previous year, resulting in a small but exceptional quality crop.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003eIn the Winery\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe hand-harvested Chardonnay fruit was whole-bunch pressed, cold settled and then racked into one and two year old French barrels for fermentation. The wine remained on lees during malolactic fermentation before continuing to mature in barrel for around 12 months prior to bottling.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003eCellaring Potential\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis wine has now entered its drinking window and will continue to develop gracefully over the coming years. Cameron Douglas MS recommends drinking from now through 2030.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch4\u003eVintage Notes\u003c\/h4\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eHarvest Date\u003c\/strong\u003e: 27 February 2023\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBottling\u003c\/strong\u003e: 13 February 2024\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eComposition\u003c\/strong\u003e: 100% Chardonnay\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAlcohol\u003c\/strong\u003e: 13.5% ABV\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTotal Acidity\u003c\/strong\u003e: 4.6 g\/L\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003epH\u003c\/strong\u003e: 3.37\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eClosure\u003c\/strong\u003e: Screw cap\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBottle Size\u003c\/strong\u003e: 750ml\u003cbr\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eProduction\u003c\/strong\u003e: Limited release of 112 dozen bottles\u003c\/p\u003e\n","brand":"Brick Bay Wines","offers":[{"title":"Single Bottle","offer_id":55638967386411,"sku":"CH23-single","price":59.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Trio","offer_id":55638967419179,"sku":"CH23-Trio","price":168.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Six","offer_id":55638967451947,"sku":"CH23-Six","price":325.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Twelve","offer_id":55638967484715,"sku":"CH23-Twelve","price":637.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0901\/2822\/0459\/files\/Brick-Bay-Wines-Chardonnay-2023-single.png?v=1790041113","url":"https:\/\/www.brickbay.co.nz\/products\/chardonnay-2023","provider":"Brick Bay","version":"1.0","type":"link"}