Xanadu Stevens Road Chardonnay 2020
- 95
- $80
- Drink by: 2022-2030
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The Gin Gin – aka Mendoza – chardonnay clone is very Margaret River. Very Western Australia, for that matter. It dominates plantings in the west while a range of French clones tend to be favoured around the rest of the country. The Stevens Road chardonnay is very Gin Gin . . . sunny, breezy, beachy. Like lounging on the sands of Gnarabup Beach, sipping on a freshly-squeezed tropical fruit juice, and taking in the scent of the ocean and the coastal scrub. That’s Gin Gin. This is a delightful wine, highlighting what we love about Margaret River chardonnay – its immediacy.
It’s obvious, luscious and absolutely delicious. Ripe peach, nectarine and citrus roll off the tongue easily. There is a lovely textural mouthfeel here, slippery and smooth. Oak presence is never too far away, but is far from excessive with a soft vanillin, almond butter overlay. The ripeness of the fruit and its richness demands attention as does the structure and extra layers of flavour that oak can bring. And it’s smart, well-seasoned oak. That makes a big difference. A wine for drinking now and for later. The best of both worlds.
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.
