Pre-Release (Delivery mid-September) 2022 Redbrook Reserve Chardonnay

PRE-RELEASE (delivery mid-September)

Please note that we have a very limited allocation of this pre-release available. Please note this wine will be dispatched from mid-September.

colour

Pale, dry straw with a vibrant green rim. Incredibly youthful in condition.

aroma & palate

A style of Chardonnay unique to Margaret River and Evans & Tate – subtle layers of aroma, flavour and textural complexity is the aim (whilst ensuring freshness and brightness is not sacrificed) with no one element dominating.

Powerful flavours of melon, pear and yellow nectarine form the base of the wine, which is overlaid with subtle savoury complex notes from wild fermentation on solids in French oak puncheons. The palate is remarkably seamless and balanced which is the hallmark of all Redbrook wines.  

cellaring

Although beautiful now, will continue to develop complexity for at least ten years from vintage. 

vintage

Our 2022 vintage was set up with excellent winter rainfall received over June, July and August in 2021 – very close to the long-term average of 556mm. This ensured the soil profile reached capacity and recharged dams in the vineyard. A mild spring followed with October having significantly higher rainfall than average and spring being cool and cloudy in general. Budburst was surprisingly even but late as a result with November flowering also happening under cool (but drier) conditions with some variability in fruit set and subsequent early berry development as a result (~3 weeks later than typical).

December and January then provided extraordinarily dry and sunny conditions (a very warm period over Christmas) with no rainfall which saw vine maturity “catch up” to a harvest start of only around a week later than average. A strong Marri blossom helped preserve the quality of the vintage by distracting birds that would have otherwise been feasting on the ripening grapes.

A cooler change in the night temperatures and a light rain event in late February after our Chardonnay had been picked was perfectly timed to refresh the vines and allow for an extended ripening period (“hang time”) and a flexible picking window for the red varieties to ensure full flavours developed and tannins were fine and ripe.

All varietals achieved excellent quality and ripeness across the region with crop levels lower than 2021 to a more average volume which has further boosted the flavour and balance in the wines of 2022.

winemaking

Handpicked into 10kg tubs with the fruit then being cooled to 8-10C before being de-juiced. The cold, whole bunches of Chardonnay were then tipped into the press which then squeezed the juice out by the use of an airbag slowly inflating to low pressures – this is the gentlest way to extract the juice and is a prerequisite to making world class Chardonnay wine.

The juice was allowed a limited amount of controlled oxidation with the turbid juice then going straight into barrel – 100% French oak puncheons (500L) used with 17% being new and the balance 1yr olds. All barrels were then wild fermented on solids to dryness before a small amount of SO2 was added, and the wine chilled and barrels topped and bunged.

No MLF was allowed. Battonage was undertaken on each new barrel every 6 weeks and on the 1yr barrels every 8 weeks. Barrel maturation was conducted at 15C for 11 months followed by a further 6 months on yeast lees in tank before further maturation in bottle. 

region

Margaret River

variety

Chardonnay  

analysis

• Alcohol: 12.5%
• pH: 3.04
• Acidity (TA): 7.34 g/L

Fried lemon and almond coated King George Whiting with crab salad.

Sydney Royal Wine Show 2024

Best Chardonnay Trophy
The Albert Chan Memorial Prize for Best White

97

Royal Queensland Wine Awards 2024

Wine Show of Western Australia 2023

Melbourne Royal Wine Awards 2023

perth royal wine awards 2023