Shaw + Smith M3 Chardonnay

M3 Chardonnay bottle image

Wine Description

The Shaw + Smith winery was built in 2000, giving us the ability to whole-bunch press cold grapes, and allowing the evolution of style reflected in the first M3 Chardonnay from that 2000 vintage. The most significant event since then came in 2012 with the purchase of the Lenswood vineyard. Chardonnay was originally planted in Lenswood for sparkling wine production but as site knowledge has evolved, it now fulfils its potential for fine still wine, with finesse, flavour, and great natural acidity.

accordion plus icons
Acclaim
"Light, green-tinged yellow. Fresh, smoke-tinged pear and tangerine scents are complemented by hints of fennel and vanilla. Taut and sharply focused, offering bitter pear skin and peach pit flavors and a bracing suggestion of citrus pith. Lingers with strong tenacity, leaving resonating orchard fruit and mineral notes behind."
— Vinous, Dec 2021
“A beautifully poised wine, balance and elegance inevitably part of the equation. There is a purity to the drive of the fruit that makes recitation of what are usual stages of vinification unnecessary. It's the quality of the fruit, the attention to detail and the cumulated decades of experience that make this wine so special.” (Best of Chardonnay, 2021 Halliday Wine Companion Awards)
— James Halliday, Aug 2020
View more acclaim Arrow Right
accordion plus icons
Vineyard & Production Info
Vineyard name
Lenswood
Soil composition
Sandy-Loam overlying Quartzite and Shale
Training method
Double-Guyot VSP
Elevation:
1,254 - 1,815 feet
Vines/acre:
740 - 1,110
Yield/acre:
3.2 tons
Harvest time:
March
First vintage of this wine:
2000
accordion plus icons
Winemaking & Aging
Varietal composition:
100% Chardonnay
Fermentation container:
Barriques and Puncheons
Length of alcoholic fermentation:
15 days
Fermentation temperature:
68 °F
Malolactic fermentation:
Yes
Type of aging container:
Barriques and Barrels
Type of oak:
French
Length of aging before bottling:
9 months
Age of Aging Container:
New to 3 years
Length of bottle aging:
8 months
Total SO2
130
accordion plus icons
Analytical Data
pH level:
3.2
Acidity:
7.1 g/L
Alcohol:
13 %
Total SO2
130
Residual sugar:
0.63 g/L
accordion plus icons
Wine Production

Hand picked and whole bunch pressed. Fermented and matured on lees in French oak barriques and puncheons.

accordion plus icons
About the Vineyard

Shaw + Smith own two vineyards in the Adelaide Hills, at Balhannah and Lenswood, totalling 55 ha. The vineyards are planted to varieties that perform particularly well in the region, namely Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Shiraz.