WINE REVIEW
This wine is one half of a duo of new Winemakers’ Collection wines from Balfour. They explore the expression of single-vineyard, single-clone wines crafted by Balfour’s Head Winemaker, Fergus Elias.
Clone 76 Chardonnay is a Dijon clone that is known for its purity and delicacy, and Fergus has treated it with the utmost respect here with a non-Malo, low-dosage (just under 6g/l) approach.
The nose is incredibly pure and fragrant, with bright green apple, white peach and a touch of candied apple and cashew nut brittle.
On the palate there’s a gorgeous ripeness to the fruit. There’s lots of ripe yellow apple and peach, with touches of caramelised nuts and brioche, cut through with a bright chalky minerality and lemon zest immediacy. There’s also a lingering hint of white chocolate in the background, but the overall experience remains brisk and chiselled throughout.
Overall, this is a beautifully refined release, full of grace and tension with lots of subtle complexity. It’s surely set up to continue to improve in the bottle.
