Castelli Estate Great Southern Chardonnay 2023

I’m calling this attractive, flavoursome Chardonnay from Denmark the perfect date night wine. It’s price and quality are something you can afford to indulge in perhaps not nightly, but definitely once a week when that special moment calls. It combines ripe stone fruit and citrus with an almost indulgent textural appeal. White peach, nectarine, citrus with a whisper of barley sugar bring a lively and lifted aroma to the glass. Generous in flavour with additional nougat and spice elements, the palate is defined by a bright citrus edge and brisk acidity that works so well, teasing the tastebuds and contributing to a delicious, juicy finish. There is flavour aplenty, but it is delivered with great style.

Jeni Port

Wine critic at Winepilot

Jeni Port is one of Australia’s top wine communicators. Based in Melbourne, Jeni created the first wine column in the (then) Sun News-Pictorial before moving over to The Age and becoming that paper’s longest-serving wine writer. Over the years she has written for most Australian wine magazines and these days calls WinePilot home. She is also a Tasting Panel member on the Halliday Wine Companion. She was named Wine Communicator of the Year and Legend of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival in 2014 and in 2018 Legend of the Vine. She is a founding board member of Australian Women In Wine and is the co-deputy chair of Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards and China’s Wine List of the Year Awards.

Wine writer and critic