Description
"Following on from a dry winter we experienced regular, well-timed rainfall throughout spring and summer. This rainfall, along with mild and sunny conditions for the remainder of the ripening season promoted strong vine growth, good flowering and bunch development. Fruit ripened slowly but evenly resulting in moderate yields with plenty of flavour. One of our best seasons on record. Fine and precise with fresh sugar snap pea and fennel, white nectarine and a hint of struck match. There is tension and length on the palate with classic Tolpuddle Vineyard acidity and fine, chalky texture adding complexity and interest. A lesson in elegance and restraint." - Winemaker Notes
"Ooh-boy the Tolpuddle Chardonnay is in a good place. I guess you could call this vintage a 'classic' . A little more restraint and line than the '23; a little more filigree and nuance, those flinty/struck-match tones a little further back in the mix and woven through the wine in an intricate pattern. White peach, lemon, grapefruit and nectarine fruits are high fidelity and beautifully poised, suffused with soft spice, clover and grapefruit blossom, crushed stone, cinnamon, a murmur of vanillin oak and spiced poached pear, grilled hazelnuts, crème fraîche and a whisper of onshore breeze. Everything is in sharp relief, with the purest of fruit. It's all detail and tension, with a textural glaze of grapefruit pith and a sapid, mineral line that builds like a crescendo before releasing, finishing long and true. It's a stunner." - 98 Points, Dave Brookes, Halliday Wine Companion
"A smattering of quartzite, white apple flesh, and lemon aspen. Chalk dust and fennel seed. Nutmeg grated into white sauce, ground ginger, and the luxuriousness of triple-cream brie. The acidity dances with light, agile feet across the palate, while new oak is so artfully integrated you find yourself searching for the seams it’ s been woven into. This is perhaps the most dialled-back expression of oak on the nose—not from lesser use, but from the way it has been entirely absorbed by the fruit and the wine's palpable energy. Buoyant and spritely, its mealy mid-palate creaminess is swiftly chased by almond skin and a flicker of sea-flake salinity. A triumphant vintage of chardonnay, and a testament to the vineyard’ s impeccable quality—one that many fortunate visitors can now witness firsthand." - 98 Points, Shanteh Wale, Wine Pilot
