Tolpuddle Chardonnay

Chardonnay & Chardonnay-based blends
Chardonnay bottle image
Chardonnay bottle image

POS Materials

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Tolpuddle Chardonnay

Chardonnay & Chardonnay-based blends

Tolpuddle Vineyard Chardonnay reflects the cool maritime climate of Tasmania's Coal River Valley, and the site itself is gently sloping, north-east facing, with light silica over sandstone.  The result is a fine and precise Chardonnay with a backbone of firm acidity, and a combination of lightness of texture, and intensity of flavor.

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Wine Production

 

Tasting Notes

This wine is true to the Tolpuddle Vineyard Chardonnay style: fine and precise with firm acidity, and a combination of lightness of texture and intensity of flavour. The 2017 vintage reflects a wonderful, cool season and the results of the detailed work done in the vineyard.

Food Pairing

This refined cool climate Chardonnay suits many different plates, but we find it to be a perfect match with pan-fried sea scallops. 

Tolpuddle Vineyard Chardonnay reflects the cool maritime climate of Tasmania's Coal River Valley, and the site itself is gently sloping, north-east facing, with light silica over sandstone.  The result is a fine and precise Chardonnay with a backbone of firm acidity, and a combination of lightness of texture, and intensity of flavor.

All Products →

Wine Production

 

Tasting Notes

This wine is true to the Tolpuddle Vineyard Chardonnay style: fine and precise with firm acidity, and a combination of lightness of texture and intensity of flavour. The 2017 vintage reflects a wonderful, cool season and the results of the detailed work done in the vineyard.

Food Pairing

This refined cool climate Chardonnay suits many different plates, but we find it to be a perfect match with pan-fried sea scallops. 

Brand Materials

Tech Sheet Download Bottle Shot Download Acclaim Linkout
98
POINTS
“Planted in 1988 and named after the Tolpuddle Martyrs who grew beer hops on the Coal River Valley vineyard, which now makes one of Australia’s most thrillingly mineral, tightly coiled Chardonnays. Mouthwatering flavours of whetstone, struck match, steely grapefruit and nectarine ricochet energetically all the way to the back palate. Great line and length.”
Decanter
98
POINTS
“This is one of Australia's most exciting vineyards. Many Tasmanian chardonnay producers struggle in managing acidity, Tolpuddle simply makes it an essential part of the wine, serving to highlight to highlight the nectarine, white peach and grapefruit flavours. Likewise, oak is an incidental part, serving to delicately frame the fruit.” (Top 100 of 2018)
James Halliday
98
POINTS
“Planted in 1988 and named after the Tolpuddle Martyrs who grew beer hops on the Coal River Valley vineyard, which now makes one of Australia’s most thrillingly mineral, tightly coiled Chardonnays. Mouthwatering flavours of whetstone, struck match, steely grapefruit and nectarine ricochet energetically all the way to the back palate. Great line and length.”
Decanter
98
POINTS
“Planted in 1988 and named after the Tolpuddle Martyrs who grew beer hops on the Coal River Valley vineyard, which now makes one of Australia’s most thrillingly mineral, tightly coiled Chardonnays. Mouthwatering flavours of whetstone, struck match, steely grapefruit and nectarine ricochet energetically all the way to the back palate. Great line and length.”
Decanter
97
POINTS
“What a nose of chalk, crushed stones, slate, vanilla, spices, honeysuckle, sliced apples, quince, dried sage, thyme and a ton of freshly squeezed lemons and limes. The palate’s very edgy with a taut line of acidity, but it fits in so well the stone fruit and flora undertones. Clarity, precision and focus that matches up to any top Grand Cru Burgundy. Not for the faint of heart but the fearless.” (#14 of Top 100 Australian Wines of 2018)
James Suckling
95
POINTS
"Last year’s wine was exquisitely pure and finessed, this years version is bolder, with less whipped butter and more butterscotch. It’s probably a better wine too. Complexity is the key – a second glass gives a mandarin tang and the oak is cleverly understated, with a medium bodied, delicate, acid-shaped style that takes more from Chablis than Montrachet (sorry for the French benchmark cliche), Again, a perfectly formed cool climate Chardonnay of the top echelon (and so refreshing), if still a little on the lean side."
Australian Wine Review
93
POINTS
“Limpid, green-hued yellow. Intense, mineral- and lees-accented citrus and orchard fruit scents show excellent clarity. Develops hints of honeysuckle and iodine with air and puts on weight as well. Sharply delineated nectarine, Meyer lemon and pear nectar flavors show impressive mineral cut. The mineral quality carries strongly through the finish, which leaves behind suave honeysuckle, anise and toasted brioche notes.”
Vinous
93
POINTS
“One of the more exciting Tasmanian projects to make it into global distribution, Tolpuddle is an offshoot of Shaw + Smith in the Adelaide Hills. The 2017 Chardonnay is a strong effort, offering some funky, complex aromas of struck match layered over subtle French oak and crisp notes of pineapple and underripe peaches. It's medium-bodied, with great drive and energy that persist through the long, lemony finish.”
Wine Advocate
92
POINTS
“Intense and vivid, with a crisp core of Meyer lemon and white grapefruit flavors, accents of cedar, toast and spice, and an appealing note of orange zest that lingers on the finish.”
Wine Spectator
17 out of 20
“Low yield and low sunshine made bright fruit and lots of fun. Searing acidity. Very Chablis-like.”
Jancis Robinson
“Pale-yellow-green in the glass with salty, flinty, grapefruit aromas. Stony minerality and flinty notes blend harmoniously with stone fruit, melon and hints of grapefruit. A bit of weight, bright acidity and a very long finish make for a perfectly balanced and complex Chardonnay. This extraordinary Tolpuddle Chardonnay blew me away. I loved the flinty character of the wine so much I purchased more. When we tasted it several months later, it was just as delicious as I remembered. Also, don’t overlook Tolpuddle Pinot Noir. If Tasmania isn’t on your wine radar, it should be.”
Pull That Cork
“The first Chardonnay was from Tasmania, a place that is creating a lot of excitement as it is an isolated island state that, in some sections of it, gives the feeling of going back in time. The Tolpuddle property is actually a special plot right on the ocean which has been around for a while selling grapes to other producers until Australian wine producer Michael Hill Smith (Shaw + Smith in the Adelaide Hills) purchased it around 2011. It quickly went from being unknown to being a wow property that makes amazing cool climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines. This 2017 had subtle notes of nuts and spice with golden apple flavors filling the moderate body that had a zing of citrus peel on the finish.”
Forbes
“This smells immediately classy, tangy fruit and subtle but present oak spice with just a touch of struck-match reduction. It smells expensive. (Wine-Searcher suggests around $50.) This has terrific freshness and precision, bright, fully integrated yet distinctive acidity and no lack of vivacious fruit, though that is not the primary impression at this young stage (especially under screwcap) when the oak is in evidence. On the finish there’s a touch of struck-match reduction too but it is subtle. Perfect harmony already. Delicious and so moreish.” (17.5 out of 20 points)
Jancis Robinson

Vineyard & Production Info

Vineyard name:
Tolpuddle Vineyard
Vineyard size:
50 acres
Soil composition:
Light Silica over Sandstone
Training method:
Guyot VSP
Elevation:
132 - 198 feet
Vines/acre:
1,110 - 1,515
Yield/acre:
2.4 tons
Exposure:
Northeastern
Year vineyard planted:
1988
Harvest time:
March - April
First vintage of this wine:
2012

Winemaking & Aging

Varietal composition:
100% Chardonnay
Fermentation container:
Barrels
Length of alcoholic fermentation:
15 days
Fermentation temperature:
68 °F
Malolactic fermentation:
Yes - 20%
Type of aging container:
Barriques and Barrels
Size of aging container:
228L - 500L
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

Analytical Data

pH level:
3.1
Acidity:
7.5 g/L
Alcohol:
13 %
Residual sugar:
0.4 g/L

About the Vineyard

Tolpuddle Vineyard is an outstanding site within the Coal River Valley region. Planted in 1988 solely to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, the vineyard takes its name from the Tolpuddle Martyrs, whose “reward” for starting England’s first agrarian union was to be transported to Tasmania as convicts.

The vineyard is on a gentle slope, north-east facing. The soil is light silica sands over sandstone, and of moderate vigour, ensuring well-balanced vines.

Since acquiring the vineyard in 2011, Martin Shaw and Michael Hill Smith have invested heavily in improving all aspects of the vineyard, including soil improvement, conversion to cane pruning, trellis modifications, frost protection and clonal improvements. They are fully committed to seeing it recognised as one of Australia’s great single vineyard sites.

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