2017 Beechworth Wine Estates Chardonnay

Barrel fermented in French oak, 30% of which was new, then matured on lees for 10 months. Brilliant pale straw in colour with greenish tinged edges and a watery hue. Elevated white peach and nectarine aromas sit over lightly toasted oak and spicy dried honey elements followed by citrus and subtle gun flint end notes. Elegant and fresh with good richness and a fleshy textural feel, the palate disperses flavours of white peaches and nectarines over a back drop of dried honey, biscuity oak, citrusy nougat and delicate infusions of gun flint. Excellent length, finishing dry with good fresh acidity and a long refined aftertaste.
Drink over the next 3-4 years.
Alc. 13.3%

Other Reviews….
The only thing I don’t like about this fantastic chardonnay from Beechworth is the quality of the bottle image. I’ve ridden my bike past this vineyard a few hundred times but I’ve never turned in or indeed given it much thought. It looks unprepossessing. But geez, would ya cop a load of this. Stonefruit, nougat, pebbles and bams of citrus, juice and blossom. It’s seductive and it’s rich, but it’s also thrillingly long. It’s a “winemaker’s style”, which has been known to make wine drinkers run/ride a mile, but there’s power to the palate; flesh amid the sear of acidity. Stash some of this away for a couple of years and you are in clover. Love at first swig. Drink 2020-2026.
95 points
Campbell Mattinson – The Wine Front