Elephant Hill Reserve Chardonnay

2021, Hawkes Bay New Zealand

Only produced when quality hits their high, high standards
95/100 (Cam Douglas MS), 94/100 (Sam Kim), 5 Stars (Raymond Chan Wine Reviews), 93/100 (Stephen Wong MW, The Real Review), 95/100 (Cam Douglas MS)
" This stylishly restrained number is just approaching drinkability and will comfortably gain complexity over the mid-term" (Stephen Wong MW, The Real Review))
Aged 11 months in French oak (18% new) with lees stirring, then a further 5 months on lees in tank to add richness, flavour and texture

Elephant Hill only release their sleek looking Elephant Hill Reserve Chardonnay when the quality hits the mark. When they say that, they mean it. These guys set the bar pretty high when it comes to quality. That might be something to do with their German owners, Roger and Reydan Weiss, that spare no expense in running this state of the art winery located on the stunning Te Awanga coastline, and boasts one of the finest winery restaurants in NZ!

So when the tip top 2021 vintage came along and gave the Elephant Hill crew some top notch fruit from their coastal Te Awanga vineyard, they got about creating their Reserve label Chardonnay.

They gave it the full whizz bang treatment behind closed doors – slow fermentation with indigenous yeast, aged 11 months in French oak (18% new) with lees stirring, then a further five months on lees in tank to add richness, flavour and texture.

The result? Well, what else would you expect but one seriously delicious, richly flavoured Chardonnay that they sum up simply by saying “The exceptional fruit purity, concentration and complexity are the hallmarks of our Elephant Hill Reserve Chardonnay“. It’s got real potential to get even better over the coming years, throw a six pack in the cellar now and tuck into them between now and 2034.