Rocky Road Chardonnay 2009

Tasting Note

Tropical aromas of pineapple and lychee are backed with complex dried fruits and almond meal. The palate is tight but lush with a generouse serve of blood orange and tangarine. Red citrus and mandarin flavours linger on the finish.

Ryan Walsh, winemaker

THE SEASON

Spring 2008 was wet and blustery hampering the `09 fruit set and reducing yields quite significantly. The cool summer meant that harvest started two and a half weeks after our normal start time. But with small crops came amazing intensity and quality. Due to a very late break in the season the red grapes were able to hang on long enough to achieve concentration and superb flavour.

VINEYARDS

Fruit is sourced from the Rocky Road vineyard which lies in the headwaters of the Chapman Brook, near Witchcliffe in the south of the Margaret River region. With a northerly aspect, the vines enjoy long days of sunshine, moderated by the vineyard's southern location. All vines on the McHenry Hohnen vineyards are grown on a single bilateral cordon with a vertically trained canopy. It is a simple and practical format that maximises light penetration and maintains a balanced vine.

VINIFICATION

Grapes are harvested in the cool of the night and following whole berry pressing, the juice is settled, and then run into barrels for the primary fermentation. Some batches are inoculated with yeast whilst others are left to proceed with a natural fermentation. The finished wine is left on spent yeast cells until the blend is assembled and bottled in late summer.

Alcohol 13.5 
pH 3.06 
Acidity 8.1 
Residual sugar 1.7

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