Yes, yes…..I know you all secretly love a bit of guts to your Chardy. First hand I know that people who like the bigger and riper styles of Chardonnay ask for it in hushed tones like an embarrassing fetish. To paraphrase: if you make it, they will come. So De Bortoli (Riverina) winemaker Joel Veenhuizen has thrown this one together. Majority of juice fermented in oak. Maturation on fine lees for 8 months with the lot going through malolactic fermentation. Strap in.

De Bortoli, Buttery, Chardonnay, Riverina, 2024

Medium straw gold with green edges. Fresh bread crust, preserved lemon, ripe yellow melon, white peach flesh, butterscotch, creamed honey, crushed white salt, roast pork flesh and a little hessian sack. Full and fleshy. There’s a touch of struck match and white quartz stoniness to give some interest and balance over lemon curd, peach melba and nougat. The finish still crisp with a bitter herb nuance. It’s unapologetically big in style, but showing some class

RRP: $20
Alc: 13%
Rating: 88/100

Wine sample courtesy of De Bortoli