Description
The 2017 Alena Chardonnay was hand harvested on 18 February. The grapes were whole bunch pressed and the free run and pressings separated until final blending. After chilling, 100% of the unsettled juice was placed in 500 litre puncheons and 228 litre barriques for fermentation by wild yeast. The fermentation was long and slow, taking almost 2 ½ weeks to complete. At the end of fermentation, the wine was left on yeast lees for 9 months with weekly stirring to develop a creamy, texture palate. The wine was blended and bottled in January 2018.
Alcohol: 13.0% | Production: 180 dozen
Jacqui –
James Halliday 95 points
This is Helen & Joey’s flagship Chardonnay, and has been made to age with grace thanks to its natural acidity, restrained use of new oak and (bravely) low alcohol. Unless you have had the luck to be able to taste new vintages of a good wine and then watch them develop over five to 10 years, you might well think the wine is too thin. It’s not. 12.5% alc.