Church Road Cuve Series Chardonnay 2002, Hawke's Bay

Home > Our Wines > Wine Ranges > Cuve Series >

Church Road Cuve Series

Hawke's Bay Chardonnay 2002

Awards & Reviews

Gold: Int. Chardonnay Challenge (Gisborne) 2005

Silver: NZWS Royal Easter Wine Show 2005

Bronze: Int. Chardonnay Challenge (Gisborne) 2004

Very fine wine that has an air of creamy luxury about it. Pure fruit runs through its heat, mostly of the ripe grapefruit type, and there is real depth and substance to the wine at every turn. Again the finish is slightly undermined by warm alcohol, but the lush textures work to save it from the worst effects of this negative. Very attractive wine. Delicious drinking, impressively worked.

Grill Magazine (31 Mar 2006)

This top-of-the-range wine is a big wine with a soft, but broad, mid palate and a lovely long firm finish. Well worth its elevated status and price of mid $30s, I also tried some barrel samples from the recent vintage. All were good, but of particular note was a component of "reserve" '05 chardonnay, that was fat, okay and ripe, and so good that I could have taken it home with me then.

Hugh Wood - Hamilton Press (29 June 2005)

If one word were to sum up this wine for me, it would be balance. Each component of a fine Chardonnay is exquisitely present, but each is so well balanced against the others that no one ends up dominating. So on the nose there is that fat, buttery smell of a big Chardonnay, but on tasting this doesn't mean butter dominates; rather, it's the honeyed tones almost of a "sticky", followed by a dry, refined finish. Similarly, at 14%, the alcohol is generous but is not allowed to overpower everything else. Something to seek out for a special occasion.

Mark Wilson - The Press (19 May 2005)

Hints of grapefruit and figs, with layers of intriguing flavours. It's a complex, understated wine, unlike the normal Church Road Hawke's Bay Chardonnay 2004 which has lots of ripe peach and savoury nutty flavours backed by smoky oak (***½). With the Cuvee, the winemakers are aiming at a more Burgundian style which will continue to develop over several years.

Charmian Smith - Otago Daily Times (9 Mar 2005)

Creamy, leesy Hawke's Bay wine, grapefruit and nectarine, mealy and mildly oaky, with good weight and concentration. Now/medium.

Graeme Barrow - Northern Advocate (8 Jan 2005)

This wine combines the concentration of ripe, low-yielding Chardonnay fruit with the balance and elegance that comes from traditional Burgundian winemaking techniques to produce a wine of subtlety and finesse.

Winemaker's Notes

print-friendly version (requires Acrobat)

Release date: October 2004
Variety: 100% Chardonnay
Region: Hawke's Bay

Description

Colour: Pale straw.

Aromas: Elegant and fragrant. Refined citrus blossom and nectarine fruit aromas are

overlaid with subtle oak, savoury yeast and mineral complexity.

Palate: The wine's complex aromas are echoed by the flavours on the long, textured and concentrated palate.

Recommended Cellaring

Careful cellaring for five years or more will be rewarded with an increase in the mineral, savoury and hazelnut complexity in the wine. Expect the palate to unfold and soften even further.

Vineyards / Region

The high heat and warm, dry autumn conditions in Hawke's Bay bring Chardonnay to full ripeness with excellent flavour concentration. This is particularly apparent on the river terraces and flats where low vigour soils force higher sugars and lower crops.

Careful canopy management ensures excellent berry exposure to sunlight, enriching varietal characteristics and producing ripe fruit flavours. In addition, low crop levels enabled the vines to optimise the Hawke's Bay sunshine resulting in intense flavour concentration.

Harvest

The 2002 vintage was warm and dry giving clean, ripe fruit with exceptional concentration.

Brix at harvest: 24°

Winemaking

Winemakers: Chris Scott

Hand-harvested fruit was gently whole-bunch pressed and then settled overnight. Whole bunch pressing produces a soft, elegant wine with good ageing ability. Barrel fermentation of cloudy juice emphasises the mealy, mineral complexity which is an integral part of this wine's style.

The wine was fermented and aged in French oak barrels of which 35% were new barrels and the balance was one-year-old. It was left for 10 months on full yeast lees with regular stirring. This helps to develop complexity and further enhance the textural qualities of the wine.

Analysis

Alcohol: 14% vol.
Total Acidity: 7.65 g/l
pH: 3.42
Residual Sugar: Dry

Vintages

1994, 1995, 1998, 2002, 2004*

* currently available vintage(s)

Top of page

Our Wines

Awards

Functions & Weddings

Winery Experience

How To Find Us

Contact Us

Church Road Winery