Huia Chardonnay 2016

On the nose Huia Chardonnay shows ripe peach and pear that combines with lifted vanilla pod. The palate has mixed rich stone and citrus fruit with a silky creamy texture. This wine is delicious with chargrilled salmon, lobster or crayfish, roasted or baked chicken, pasta in cream sauces, mature brie and other soft cheeses and well, pretty much most foods because you know – chardonnay rules. It’s a dry one so remember to eat your fat while drinking this beauty.

Marlborough, New Zealand

Vegan, Organic

13%ABV

75cl

MORE INFORMATION

Producer

Claire & Mike started Huia in the mid ‘90s. Living amongst the vines in house they built themselves, they raised their two daughters, Tui & Sophie while handcrafting wine and on occasion honey and olive oil as well as boat and a tiny house. After a tenure at Roseworthy in Adelaide, Australia learning the craft of winemaking, and where Mike met Claire, there seemed no contest for where Mike might put down roots in what is arguably New Zealand’s first real home of wine, Marlborough. From winemaking roles at Vavasour, Cloudy Bay and at Champagne Veuve Clicquot, where Mike learned the art of hand-riddling thousands of champagne bottles and the craft of making authentic sparkling wine, the call to make his own wine with Claire was too loud to ignore.

Viticulture

The Chardonnay is all estate grown on the Huia Home Block vineyard. This vineyard was planted in 1995 on a range of soil types from sandy to very stony alluvial silts. The Dijon 95 vines within the vineyard come from the Meursault region of Burgundy. These vines are low in vigour and we spur pruned to even out the growth and ripening behaviour.

Winemaking

The grapes were all hand picked, de-stemmed and crushed, then fermented with natural yeasts and aged in young French oak barriques. About 70% of the wine has gone through natural malolactic fermentation, contributing a lovely creaminess to the palate. Lovely with smoked salmon, creamy pasta, baked chicken or mature soft cheeses.

Taste

Sophisticated and elegant, with subtle peachy fruit which mingles with layers of toasted nuts and vanilla cream, and the terroir shines though on the palate.

Food Pairing

Lovely with smoked salmon, creamy pasta, baked chicken or mature soft cheeses.