Moss Wood Ribbon Vale Chardonnay 2023

Moss Wood Wines is one of Australia’s most prominent wineries. Located in the premium sub-region of Wilyabrup in Margaret River, Moss Wood was the second winery to be established in the locality after Vasse Felix

Grape Varietals & Region:100% Chardonnay from Wilyabrup region of Margaret River, Western Australia.

Taste Profile: The nose begins with stonefruit notes peaches and nectarines, enhanced with a background of tropical fruits like Guava and Lychee. There are layers of complexity underneath including shortbread biscuit, butter-baked pastry of the croissant type, roast almond and cashew nuts. The palate has ripe stonefruits of nectarine and peach, as well as honeydew melon, kiwi fruit and popcorn. The wine has a firm structure with good acidity and tannin which is balanced by the full body and richness. There are some complex notes of caramel from malolactic fermentation and toasty oak from the new barrels.

Winemaking Process: The Chardonnay was picked by hand and transported to the winery, where the grapes were hand-sorted and pressed as whole bunches, followed by juice clarification and inoculation with multiple yeast strains for primary fermentation in stainless steel tanks. Alcoholic fermentation was maintained at a controlled temperature of up to 20C. At the midway point, as activity slowed, the fermenting must was transferred to oak.The wine was fermented and matured in 23% new French barriques, reflecting the varietys ability to carry oak flavours.Following full malolactic fermentation, each batch was blended, treated with sulfur dioxide, and returned to barrel. Oak aging continued for 9 months, before the wine was blended in stainless steel.