St. Kilda Chardonnay 2014
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St. Kilda wines are produced by De Bortoli Wines, based in Bibul in the Riverina region of New South Wales. The DeBortoli family first established their operation in 1928 and since has grown the business into the largest family-owned winery in Australia, now in its 3rd generation. The St. Kilda brand was founded on the premise of producing wines of incredible value from premium Southeast Australian fruit. On the label, the iconic entrance of Luna Adventure Park located in the center of St. Kilda is depicted, a nod to the spirit of the place and the style of the wines. Southeastern Australia, rather than being classified as a wine region in the traditional sense, is officially classified as a ‘viticultural super zone.’ It measures some 1,250 miles (2,011 km) and reaches from the Pacific coast in Queensland to the Indian Ocean. The sheer scale of this zone and the diversity of its climates, zones, and latitudes make it a virtual spice market for winemakers to choose from when selecting their vineyards and their grapes. The winemaking philosophy is that great wine begins in the vineyard. The belief is that sustainable vineyard practices will deliver exceptional fruit quality to the winery as well as real environmental benefits. The focus is on careful site selection, vine maturity, and high input viticulture, with a move towards biological farming principles.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
As the most important area of wine production in Victoria today, the Yarra Valley is most popular for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, which account for over half of vineyard acreage. A gentle, rolling and rural region alongside the Margaret River, the Yarra Valley has a cool maritime climate with a lengthy growing season, perfect for these cool-climate varieties.
Two styles of Pinot Noir are possible here. The warmer Lower Yarra Valley with sandy, loam soils, produces plush and fruity Pinot Noir while the cooler, higher-elevation Upper Yarra Valley with soils of young red basalt, produces more angular and mineral-driven Pinot Noir.
Yarra Valley Chardonnay is among the best in Australia. To preserve the floral aromatics and fresh citrus flavors for which this area’s Chardonnay is so appreciated, time in barrel is restrained (though barrel fermentation is common). The best Yarra Valley Chardonnays display brilliant acidity, leesy characteristics, citrus, stone fruit and flavors of ginger and spice.
Shiraz and Cabernet find success in parts of this region as well.