Villa Maria Keltern Hawkes Bay Chardonnay 2019
98 POINTS & 5 STARS: Bob Campbell, Master of Wine, Real Review
19+/20 POINTS & 5 STARS: Candice Chow, Raymond Chan Reviews
95 POINTS: Robert Parker's - The Wine Advocate
5 STARS: Michael Cooper
"Rich and highly concentrated Chardonnay with peach, nectarine, apple, fresh baguette and nutty oak flavours. Fruit sweetness is perfectly balanced by ripe acidity. A delicious wine that promises to get even better with bottle age"
- Bob Campbell, Master of Wine, Real Review, Jul 2020
"Mainly Clone 15 and entirely barrel fermented and aged in 40% new French oak (the balance goes into second and third-fill barrels), Villa Maria's 2019 Keltern Chardonnay is another classic vintage from this established star. Tighter and more mineral in style than many of its Hawke's Bay counterparts, it offers up hints of vanilla and toasted grain against a backdrop of subtle white peaches and lively citrus fruits. Medium to full-bodied, it's richly textured and layered on the palate yet with a crisp, long-lingering finish."
- Robert Parker's - The Wine Advocate
"Bright, light yellow with some depth, youthful, even colour throughout. The nose is graceful with power, aromas of stone fruit and burnt vanilla custard; entwined with buttered toast, almonds, prickly oak spices and dusty mineral. The aromas are poise with good concentration. Medium-bodied, lemon curd, lemon sherbet and stone fruit; along with ginger, nutmeg spices, subtle nuts, toasty oak detail. The acidity is lacy and seamless with great tension, flows smoothly along. The texture is ethereal; smooth and silken across the palate, with a fine layer of dusty phenolic, enlivened by the spices and citrus pith on the back palate. Taut acid cut carries the wine to a very long, sustained finish. This is a finely-crafted Chardonnay with immaculate detail and acid tension and balance. Ready to drink now with a long time ahead, one to savour. Match with crayfish and turkey stuffing over the next 6-8 years. Fruit from Keltern vineyard, 85% Clone 15, 15% Clone 548. Handpicked, whole bunch pressed. Fermented with wild yeast to 14% alc. Aged 11 months on lees in French oak barriques, 40% new. No MLF"
- Candice Chow, Raymond Chan Reviews, Jul 2020
ABV: 14%