2022 About Time Echunga Chardonnay

95 pts
A small-batch Hills Chardonnay made by mates Henry and James, blending bright fruit with savoury complexity from a standout Echunga vineyard.

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Description

About Time is the passion project of Adelaide locals Henry Borchardt and James McLeay – Henry makes the wine, James just really loves drinking Chardonnay – and together they’ve set out to craft small-batch, single-vineyard wines from the Adelaide Hills. The idea is simple: keep it honest, keep it expressive, and make Chardonnay they’re proud to pour themselves.

This release comes from a mature Echunga vineyard planted in the 90s, sitting at 400m altitude where warm days meet cool mountain air at night. The fruit was hand-picked and whole-bunch pressed, then fermented with wild yeasts in French oak hogsheads (about a quarter new). It spent 10 months on lees, with plenty of stirring to build texture, before being bottled unfined and unfiltered. Only 180 cases were made.

The wine itself walks a neat line between freshness and weight – bright citrus and green apple flavours layered with savoury, nutty edges and a clean finish. It’s thoughtful without being overworked, a snapshot of both the site and the relaxed, no-fuss approach that defines About Time.

95 points
"Finesse, elegance, precision... Brilliant."
- Mike Bennie (Halliday Wine Companion)

Gary Walsh

Gary Walsh

The Wine Front 92 Points

Apple, pear, grapefruit, ginger and spice, oatmeal, chamomile, a slight seaweed thing here too. It’s saline, nutty, savoury, quite umami in flavour with something of a chicken stock richness, a lively tang to green apple and lemony acidity, some grainy milk powder texture, with a finish of excellent length and tang. You have to like a bit of work done on your Chardonnay as a caveat, but it’s a good wine.

Mike Bennie

Mike Bennie

Halliday Wine Companion 95 Points

Finesse, elegance, precision. Good words around this wine. Scents of green apple, light gingery spice, hazelnut, sea spray. Flavours similarly set but with a squeeze of limey citrus and some talc and chalk-like mineral characters, too. Compact, drives with great energy. The finish mouth-watering and more of the mineral ilk. Brilliant.

27 year old vineyard in Echunga, 400m above sea level. Hand-picked, Bernard Clone 76, whole bunch pressed into French (Damy) 300L Hogsheads with a mixture of 25% new and 2nd/3rd use barrels. The wine naturally went through wild yeast fermentation and malolactic fermentation. Regular lees stirring was undertaken. Unfined and unfiltered. Bottled in February 2023 after 10 months in barrel. Only 180 cases made. 13.2% alcohol.


Tasting Notes

Vibrant nose of lemon rind, green apple, honeydew melon, and pink grapefruit, accented by floral notes of white jasmine. There’s a savory saline quality reminiscent of Noilly Prat vermouth, adding complexity to the fresh fruit. The palate delivers linear acidity with a mouth-coating texture with secondary oak-derived nuances of cardamom, dill, nutmeg, and ginger mingling with softer notes of nougat, yogurt, and brioche. The wine finishes with great length, leaving a lasting impression of orchard fruit and subtle spice.

Price Bracket $31 to $40
Type White
Body Medium Bodied
Variety Chardonnay
Country Australia
Region Adelaide Hills
Australian State SA
Reviewed By Halliday Wine Companion
Critic Score 95
Alcohol 13%
Size 750ml
Vintage 2022
Closure Screw Cap

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