Chain of Ponds Unchained Grüner Veltliner 2021

I’ve never gone for a paddle in the Danube, that mighty river which winds its way through the Wachau Valley, but I imagine the experience would be akin to tasting this impressive Grüner Veltliner from Chain of Ponds. There’s an aromatic complexity that must be revered by other white varietal wines. Lemongrass, curry leaves, galangal and fine ground white pepper bring the spice while lime sherbet, crunchy apple, pear and quince notes show off the quality of the fruit. There’s something creamy there too, young coconut freshly spooned out of the husk, perhaps. Wet stone minerality and playful acid splashes around with the texture, supplying plenty of fun and the length of the palate just keeps flowing and flowing. Varietally sound and simply marvellous to drink. Can you tell that I like it?

Morgan Dunn

Morgan Dunn was a Melbourne based sommelier with over 10 years of experience. He was one of our very first Winepilots and wrote a regular wine column for The Australian and contributed to various publications including Noble Rot. In 2017 he was named 'Emerging Wine Writer of the Year' at the Louis Roederer International Wine Writers' Awards as well as receiving the Wine Communicators of Australia award for 'Best Published Feature Article or Wine Column'. He spoke Japanese and was planning to write a book on Tokyo wine bars and wine culture in Japan. In his spare time Morgan played piano, enjoyed snowboarding and went to Escape Rooms with his twin brother. He is deeply missed by many.