2023 Woodlawn Woodlawn Park Vineyard Chardonnay

94 pts
Debut Chardonnay from the Woodlawn home block at Swan Bay, generous and textural and just great drinking.

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Sale price$70.00
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In stock, ready to ship
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Description

94 points
"Quite a bit of power and depth here but requisite freshness counter... Plenty of charm and vibrancy, though chardonnay to sink one’s teeth into, a bit more."
- Mike Bennie (The Wine Front)

The debut Chardonnay from Ricky Evans' home block at Swan Bay, the same estate as the Woodlawn Park Vineyard Pinot Noir. Planted to Bernard clones 95 and 76 on free-draining aeolian sands, north-facing above the river, it's a generous site that delivers flavoursome, expressive fruit compared to the cooler character of the other Woodlawn Chardonnays.

The winemaking is layered: multiple passes through the vineyard, with whole-bunch pressed and destemmed/lightly crushed components kept separate to achieve different solid levels. Wild fermented in a mix of French and Austrian puncheons and barriques, with some MLF, then 11 months on full lees in barrel followed by four months in tank before bottling.

The result has more fruit weight and generosity than the Three Wishes Chardonnay, with the lees work adding texture and a savoury, pastry-dough complexity to the mid-palate. It's a fuller style, but with enough tension and line through the finish to keep it honest. The vines are young and the wine feels like it has more to give with time.

 

94 points - "Quite a bit of power and depth here but requisite freshness counter. Lemon-lime curd, waxy wild honey notes, ginger tea, soft, red apple notes and a touch of just-ripe pineapple. An exuberant chardonnay though the creamy edges find a nice film of grip and coolness, the finish long and trailing off with nutmeg spice and a touch of butter-honey character. Plenty of charm and vibrancy, though chardonnay to sink one’s teeth into, a bit more." - Mike Bennie (The Wine Front)

93 points - "Chardonnay from the Woodlawn Park vineyard in the Tamar Valley. Pale straw with nectarine, grapefruit and white peach fruits, clotted cream, oatmeal, yellow plum, lemon curd, grilled nuts, white flowers and stone. A little more fruit expression than the other two chardonnays in the range but still with that focus, tension and stony, savoury gaze as it trails off." - Dave Brookes Halliday Wine Companion)

93 points - "The 2023 Woodlawn Park Vineyard Chardonnay is waxy, floral and distinct. It leads with white peach, pineapple husk, crushed shells and brine. The palate is nutty and tight, with length and line to close. The estate-owned vines are young, planted in 2017 and farmed since then, on chromosome aeolian sands over deep tertiary sediments. 13% alcohol, sealed under Diam and wax." - Erin Larkin (The Wine Advocate)

93 points - "This opens with a pronounced leesy character—salted pastry dough leading into notes of honeysuckle, cheesecloth, and nutmeg. It holds firmly to its savoury frame before fruit begins to emerge: Meyer lemon, green apple skin, and white grapefruit. The palate walks that fine line between texture and tension with ease. Lemon juice, grapefruit, and tangy green apple skin cut through a creamy core, while those lees-derived pastry dough notes linger in the mouth perfume. There’s a gentle chalky grip to the sides and a preserved lemon acidity that coils everything toward a back-palate of good length. The fruit component remains coiled and tensile for now, placing the lees work firmly at the forefront. This will unfurl beautifully with time in bottle, but what’s here already is classy, chiselled, and finely wrought." - Tom Kline (Wine Pilot)

Established on our family farm, the home of the winery at Swan Bay which is quite central in the valley, this is our largest site.

The soils are free draining aeolian sands, on a gentle slope facing north, the ancient outside bend of the river, looking north over a wide span of the river where the prevailing breezes arrive cooling the vines each afternoon in this moderate micro climate.

Planted to bernard clones 95 & 76 the fruit is generous and flavoursome from this site. A number of passes, with a few different techniques including whole bunch pressed and destemmed/lightly crushed components for different solid levels. Mix of French & Austrian puncheons & barrique for wild ferment. Some portions are allowed to proceed through MLF, and the wine sees around 11 months on full lees in barrel, before transfer to tank to rest for another 4 months.

Price Bracket $51 to $100
Type White
Body Full Bodied
Variety Chardonnay
Country Australia
Region Tamar Valley
Australian State TAS
Size 750ml
Vintage 2023
Closure Cork

Woodlawn Tasmania

Woodlawn Tasmania is the umbrella under which Ricky Evans' three wine labels coalesce.

His three labels include the regional Two Tonne Tasmania series of Tamar Valley Riesling, Chardonnay and sub-regional Pinot Noirs, the experimental series of wines under the Havilah label made for his wine bar in Launceston of the same name and his Single Vineyard range of exceptional premium wines from his beloved Tamar Valley vineyards farmed by Ricky himself.

Evans is one of Tasmania's most dynamic winemakers. Over his time since serendipitously starting the Two Tonne Tasmania label in 2013, Ricky's approach to both farming grapes and making wine has matured dramatically. The young gun is now an established player in the upper echelon of the island and is set to be one of Tasmania's most influential voices in wine for many years to come.

Ricky Evans - Tamar Valley, TAS Woodlawn Tasmania

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