Tapanappa Tiers Vineyard Chardonnay 2020 Magnum 1500ml White Wine
98 points,"Winemaker Brian Croser is pretty excited about this wine, and a quick sniff and extended sip, and I think I know why. Like the rest of Australia, it was a very small crop resulting in a wine of deep fruit concentration. Once again, the wine spent an extended time until February this year on full lees, allowing pick up of further complexity and textural mouth feel. The striking feature is the palate power and length. I have tasted many of these wines, but I don't think I have tasted better."- Ray Jordan, The Western Australian 97 points,"This parcel has performed so impressively in 2020, with trademark white-peach aromas and a subtle lemon-cream edge. The oak is so well integrated here. There's impressive seamlessness on the palate with citrus-nuanced stone fruit carrying so long and fresh. Thrilling Chardonnay."- James Suckling As those glowing reviews suggest, this is Aussie Chardonnay at its finest. Frost destroyed 90% of the emerging shoots in 2020, then a cold November hindered the fruit set. Then it got hot and Australia experienced terrible fires as you'll remember from the news. This combination resulted in only a third of the normal crop in the Tiers Vineyard, but that fruit was truly exceptional - old vines step up to the plate when the chips are down. Maturation in French Vosges oak barriques has layered vanilla, roasted cashew and creamy porridge notes over the rich peach, nectarine, fig, grapefruit and quince fruit, and extended lees ageing has imparted flashes of brioche and yeasty pizza dough. This is one of Australia's all-time greats, but sadly we were only able to secure a handful of magnums. An Officer of the Order of Australia and a Decanter Man of the Year, Brian Croser is a luminary, a living legend and a true visionary. Rising to fame as the chief winemaker at Hardy's in the 1970s, he would later establish Petaluma and Argyle in Oregon. But maybe one of his most important wineries is Tapanappa, created in partnership with Bollinger and the Cazes family of Pauillac's Lynch Bages.£7.33 per 100.00ml