Dog Point Chardonnay 2018

Marlborough Chardonnay often gets forgotten behind the local sauvignon blanc and pinot noir, despite the local potential to make some of New Zealand’s best, as is on display here.

This is a superbly youthful chardonnay style showing a wonderful combination of complex and powerful fruit, although needs a little time to show its best. It radiates with punchy, bright fruits – honeydew, green mango and citrus are wound up tightly in a blanket of spicy oak that is a little raw right now. On the palate it’s more giving with a core of citrus and floral fruits underpinned by vanillin oak and driven by zippy acidity to a long and tight finish. Beautiful composure, complexity and length will see this wine drink very well over the next decade.