Saturday, April 9, 2011

Miceli 2006 "Olivia's" Mornington Peninsula Chardonnay

Grossly underpriced at a Bin End $16. This easily has the quality to justify $25+. Here are winemaker Tony Miceli's tasting notes

Picked: 31/3/2006- 14/4/2006
Bottled: 21/3/2008

Winemaking: Hand picked and whole bunch pressed, to maintain maximum fruit and minimum extraction of hard skin tannins. Fully barrel fermented with mild juice oxidation at low temperatures to attain creamy mouthfeel and maximise palate length. This wine has undergone 100% malolactic fermentation, which we feel has added further complexity without detracting from the fruit characters. Retained on fermentation lees, in barrel, for more than a year, to allow full oak integration, complexity and depth.
Oak: 30% new. Approximately 100% French
Analysis: Alc 13.5 pH 3.50 T/A 7.1 Residual sugar <0.3 g/l

Tasting Notes:
An elegant and delicate wine with complexity and subtlety.

Brilliant pale greenish yellow. Peach, cashew and citrus, vanillan oak and struck match. Seamless mouthfeel with subtle and perfectly integrated oak, restrained and yet powerful, with fine acid balance. This wine is fermented in oak, remaining in contact with its yeast lees for a full year to develop depth and complexity.

Cellaring: With barrel and bottle age this wine is drinking beautifully now but will continue to improve for at least a further 5 years, developing honey and toastiness in addition to the delicious fruit.

Winemaker’s Comments:
Not over-oaked by this length of ageing, it shows lovely balance and integration, remaining “fine” and demonstrating the elegance and length only possible with long ripening in cool conditions.
Whilst fully ripened from a warm year, I feel this still in the slightly more restrained style and is a true expression of our climate - our “terroir”. The range of picking dates adds to our ability to retain a good acid backbone and balance the richness of very ripe fruit with the delicacy of lesser ripe components.
A long way from “mainstream” Australian Chardonnay it does not rely on brute strength, alcohol, or sugar to impress.

GOLD Victorian Wine Show 2009
GOLD Cool Climate Wine Show Bathurst 2009

Our Price: $16 per bottle by the dozen

SOLD OUT

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