Man O' War Valhalla Waiheke Island Chardonnay 2019

Man O' War Valhalla Waiheke Island Chardonnay 2019Dry style Nectarine Cashew Citrus finish "Rich, complex chardonnay with grapefruit, nectarine, green apple, mint and a saline mineral character. A lively, high energy wine that promises to age very well indeed" Bob Campbell, Master of Wine, Real Review, Dec 2020 "A rich and captivating bouquet with aromas of vanilla and roasted peach, baked apple and cashew nut, sour cream and burnt butter, nectarine and baking spice. Theres no mistaking the power,

• Dry style
• Nectarine
• Cashew
• Citrus finish

"Rich, complex chardonnay with grapefruit, nectarine, green apple, mint and a saline-mineral character. A lively, high-energy wine that promises to age very well indeed" Bob Campbell, Master of Wine, Real Review, Dec 2020

"A rich and captivating bouquet with aromas of vanilla and roasted peach, baked apple and cashew nut, sour cream and burnt butter, nectarine and baking spice. There’s no mistaking the power, the oak and the variety. Full-bodied and creamy textured on the palate with stone fruit and grapefruit flavours, vanilla and raw sugar with baking spice and smoke flavours of oak, fine tannins and mediumacidity. This is a big wine, but very well made, quite serious , rich, bold, nutty and ready. Best drinking from 2022 through 2028+" Cameron Douglas, Master Sommelier, Apr 2022

The 2019 Valhalla has a wealth of ripe aromas; nectarine and grapefruit with complex layers of baking bread, cashew and flinty reductive elements. Rich and fulsome on the palate, with a spine of acidity harmoniously interwoven with richness and a ripe citrus finish. The Valhalla 2019 is beautifully composed and magnificently styled, an iconic Chardonnay for the ages.

2019 was an exceptional vintage with a perfect fruit set in the Spring followed by a hot settled summer and practically no rain during the harvest months. All their Chardonnay parcels are hand harvested and macerated before pressing. The pressed juice is left un-fined in tank to begin spontaneous fermentation with wild yeasts. The fermenting juice is then fed and transferred to 500 litre French oak puncheons for fermentation that is hot and fast. The wines are then left on gross lees until blending, small doses of sulphur dioxide are added at topping to help prevent the onset of malolactic fermentation, no lees stirring is carried out. Blending takes place in the New Year and bottling is carried out prior to the following vintage, approximately 11 months in oak.

Barrel (36% New French oak Puncheons 64% seasoned). Vineyards Gorse Laneway, Root rake, Bitch, Nikau, South 2, Noises.