Mt Difficulty Ghost Town Chardonnay 2020
Tasting Notes
Mt Difficulty Ghost Town Chardonnay 2020 is handcrafted in very limited quantities showcasing the unique personality of the diverse microclimate and soils of Lowburn Valley.
An expressive cool climate chardonnay with richness, weight and texture. A ripe, concentrated nose of yellow peach, nectarine and a touch of clotted cream richness leads to a palate of stone fruit and brioche. Fine French oak frames the wine with great finesse and elegance with a mineral acidity and a long finish.
CELLARING POTENTIAL
We expect this wine to evolve with careful cellaring for another 8-10 years.
Vintage Notes
VINTAGE 2020
The 2020 season swung the pendulum again for Central Otago. This season was characterised by a very warm summer, punctuated by vital rain events, culminating in a bumper crop that was harvested 1-2 weeks ahead of long term average. The benign, warm flowering conditions in December resulted in excellent fruit set and healthy canopies that galloped through a dry January. They were replenished by rain in February before harvest began in mid-March and was wrapped up by mid-April.
WINEMAKING CONSIDERATIONS
The fruit for our Ghost Town Chardonnay was hand-picked and handled in an oxidative fashion, destemmed and pressed straight to barrel. We fermented 100% of the juice in barrel with full solids using indigenous yeasts. 14% new French oak was used for the wines maturation, whilst maturing no lees stirring was utilised. The wine went through a full malolactic fermentation in spring, after which the barrels were stirred for a period. The wine was racked from barrel and filtered before being racked to tank to settle prior to being bottled, unfined, in November.
Alc. 13.5% T/A 6.8gL-1 pH 3.48 Residual Sugar 0 gL-1
Accolades & Awards
- 16.5/20 Points, Joelle Thomson 2023
- 93 Points, 'Excellent', Cameron Douglas MS, 2023
- 19/20 Points (95 Points), Candice Chow, Raymond Chan Wine Reviews 2023