Artis Wine Single Vineyard Chardonnay 2018

This wine must hold a special place in, winemaker, Andrew Miller’s heart. The site of this single vineyard is where Andrew’s great-great-great grandfather first settled when he moved to the Hills in 1843, having arrived in Australia two years earlier. The vineyard has an east-west orientation and the grapes are the Bernard clone. The quality of the 2018 vintage is on display here. The aim with this wine was to focus on the vineyard, not what might be possible in the winery (a philosophy which a few other winemakers could do well to adopt). Fermentation was in a mix of new and older French oak hogsheads.

A lovely, yellow colour with swathes of green interspersed. Nuts, cashews, stone fruit, a touch of mandarin. Good concentration and focus with a mineral backing. Very well constructed, and shows balance, intensity, length and complexity – it is all here. Throw in a gorgeous texture and this is a cracker with a future.