Bannockburn SRH Chardonnay 2022

Bannockburn SRH Chardonnay 2022

Named for Bannockburn founder and pioneer, Stuart Reginald Hooper, SRH Chardonnay is from a distinctive 12 row selection of our oldest Chardonnay vines at Olive Tree Hill vineyard planted in 1976.

Minimum Order 6 Units (straight or mixed)

  • Viticulture
  • Winemaking
  • Tasting Notes & Reviews

Our SRH Chardonnay is from a distinctive 12 row selection of our oldest Chardonnay vines at Olive Tree Hill vineyard planted in 1976 to clone P58. These rows are unique from the remainder of the vineyard in part due to being most in contact with and influenced by the site of an ancient seabed, and the rows sit in the middle of a north facing slope with an east-west row exposition.

Handpicked fruit was whole bunch pressed to tank for settling overnight before racking to barrels. Wild yeast fermentation in French oak hogsheads of which 33% was new, followed by partial malolactic fermentation (70%). The wine was left unstirred on lees for 10 months before being blended and bottled in February.

The 2022 vintage offers a very typical and excellent expression of SRH. All the richness and intensity one would expect from this site, with a chiselled and energetic feel in the mouth.

95 points. Light-medium yellow with a biscuity/wheat-mealy bouquet, superbly scented and flavoured with a hint of buttery character along with nougat complexities. Latent power. Has a touch of firmness and grip at the end and is nicely balanced and structured. A real food wine. Huon Hooke, therealreview.com.

 


Print Spec Sheet

Single Vineyard

Bannockburn Grigsby Chardonnay 2022
Bannockburn Grigsby Chardonnay 2022
$80
Bannockburn De La Terre Pinot Noir 2022
Bannockburn De La Terre Pinot Noir 2022
$80
Bannockburn Serré Pinot Noir 2022
Bannockburn Serré Pinot Noir 2022
$110
2023 Vintage

The 2023 growing season started off cold and wet. For the first time since 2011 our dam was full, and in fact overflowed for most of October and November (rainfall for the calendar year of 2022 was 800mm). Budburst was slightly behind average timing, but crops were down significantly: the bunch counts were low in the first place, we had a mild frost in September and the wet weather finally caught up with us via downy mildew. The rain stopped at the end of December.

The overall heat accumulation was the same (1338 Growing Degree Days) as 2021, both seasons on the slightly cooler side of average but differing in that the heat for 2023 was more toward the second half of the season. Veraison occurred in February and then we picked Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Gamay, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling in March, and Shiraz and Cabernet/Merlot in the first week of April. The picking weather was pleasant and the fruit arrived at the winery in very good condition.

While quantity was down (especially in Pinot Noir) quality was good: fresh acidity, concentration, colour, tannin and steady fermentations have us looking forward to bottling, and seemingly warmer and drier seasons as El Niño returns.

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