Eloquesta Cotto Chardonnay 2017 Case

Description

How I made this white wine

All of the Chardonnay grapes were fermented whole berry, on full skins, seeds and solids for 7 – 9 days. I hand-plunged twice a day, then gently pressed off into new and old French and Hungarian oak hogsheads. The wine was aged on lees solids for 39 months. All barrels were deliberately aged outside, under cover, but exposed to the elements. The hot summer was sought to give a rich baked ‘Cotto’ caramelised ‘honey’ effect to the wine over 3 hot dry summers, which gave depth, concentration and richness. This baked ‘Cotto’ caramelised effect is used when making Madeira and Marsala wines except this wine was not fortified with wine spirit making it a liqueur.

Through summer, the barrels could evaporate 1.5 to 2 litres of wine a week (easily). This creates a deep flavour and colour concentration that has brought this wine up to class on its own. But for all the depth and concentration, there’s no hard edges or ‘jammy’ notes or overt sweetness (the wine is dry). Three and a bit years in solitary confinement (barrel), untouched, unseen is a long time for a wine to develop character.

Tasting note (what the 2017 Mudgee Chardonnay tastes like)

The 2017 Mudgee Chardonnay wine has real depth, viscosity, concentrated fruit flavour that verges on citrus jam to honeyed golden fruits. Wafting lush notes of lemon barley sugar, marmalade, dried apricot, tinned peach, glace pineapple, butterscotch, gooey anzac biscuit, honey cake and light sultana notes …lush tangy citrus acid in nature but still rounded and soft on the length, the wines length and finish trails on and on into the minute mark and there after.

Ageing capacity

Very good 10 – 12 years, perhaps longer … But… why wait to drink it?