Paul Cluver Village Chardonnay 2022

Paul Cluver Village Chardonnay, Elgin, South Africa, 2022

Grape: 100% Chardonnay

Producer Tasting Note:

This wine is a great expression Chardonnay, bursting with citrus and citrus blossom notes followed by aromas of white peach and complemented with a great fresh palate which is long and lingering. These characteristics follow through onto the palate that reveals the natural, fine and fresh acidity of the wine with a lingering aftertaste.

Vinification:

This wine is a blend of several components of Chardonnay from different vineyards on the Estate, the vine age of these vineyards range between 5 and 18 years. This wine was partially tank fermented; 8% (unoaked), fermented in 2500 l oak vats, 50%; 6% was fermented and aged in Concrete Egg with the balance of 36% fermented and aged in older 300l barrels. All wines were fermented naturally and aged on the lees for 8 months.

Critics' Tasting Notes:

"Made chiefly from younger vineyards, the 2022 Village Chardonnay opens with classic, cool-climate Chardonnay notes of lemon skin and yellow apples with a citrus-laced nose. Medium-bodied and with 13% alcohol, the palate is fresh, clean and softly nutty, revealing delightful petrichor notes with an energetic acidity that races across the mid-palate. This food-friendly wine will drink well for the next four or five years." Drink 2023-2028

88/100 points, Anthony Mueller, THE WINE ADVOCATE, December 2023

"Pristine, apple, pear, citrus fruits, saffron spice. A complex layered intense flavour of fruit meshed with well judged oak"

Gold Medal, International Wine Challenge, 2024

Food Match: Great with Chicken, fish and creamy risotto