Coming Soon - 2024 Sailor Seeks Horse Chardonnay

Sailor Seeks Horse is a tiny vineyard that's one of Australia’s most southerly, located in the Huon valley in southern Tasmania. Owners Paul and Gilli Lipscombe have brought considerable vineyard and winemaking experience to this venture, and they've been producing outstanding Pinot Noir and Chardonnay here for over a decade.

In 2010 Paul and Gilli planted four Dijon clones of Chardonnay (95, 96, 76 & 277) in two sections of the vineyard over 2 hectares. Winemaking is tailored to the season, yet generally involves whole bunches pressed and allowed to 'hyperox' before settling for 12 hours in tank. It's then racked into 300l hogsheads of which 20% is new. Fermentation uses wild yeasts, generally no MLF, and the wine is then aged for 16 months with full lees.

Other Reviews....
Huon Valley chardonnay off Permian mudstone, clones 277, 95, 97 and 76 for the geeks amongst us, no malo, 20% new oak. Now here is a wine that smells distinctly like it is comfortable in its own skin and it hasn't been mucked with. There's an inflow of lemon curd with fruit tones of white peach, nectarine and grapefruit. Hints of crushed stone, almond meal, crème fraîche, clover blossom, cashew butter, a distant tendril of struck flint and subtle nutty oak. Finely balanced; it's all detail and tension with light textural pithiness, fine, sapid acidity and a taut and sleek palate shape that travels long and true. Drink 2026-2034.
96 points
Dave Brookes - James Halliday's Wine Companion

The 2024 Chardonnay hails from the Huon Valley vineyard, and it is decidedly a cool area—the coolest vineyard area in Australia, in fact. The wine (no malolactic fermentation) spends a year in barrel. The wine isn't bottled until September and spends the time on lees, without moving it in any way (no bâtonnage). This is lean and racy, with fruit that speaks of pink grapefruit and lemon pith, white peach and crushed nuts. This is pithy, lean and tense, and I love the purity of it. It's just as I remember it, with the overlay of the flesh of 2024. 13.2% alcohol, sealed under screw cap. Drink 2026-2036.
95 points
Erin Larkin - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate