2007 Art Series Chardonnay

Winemaker's Tasting Notes

The colour is brilliant green straw .

The fresh nose is classical Leeuwin Estate Chardonnay, with intensely lifted aromas of ripe yellow pear skins, the petals of citrus blossom, nectarine and ripe peach accompanied by hints of fig, cashews and roasted pine nuts from barrel maturation on yeast lees with integrated and stylish French oak.

The palate displays the mouth filling and intense flavours of fresh ripe pears which is full bodied and incredibly rich intermingling with delicious stone fruit flavours, nectarine and pineapple tart, the middle palate shows richness before turning to an elegance only found in the rarest of years that focus the flavours to a long and persistent finish which is both crisp and appealing.

Comments

"Where do you start with Leeuwin chardonnay, consistently Australia's great chardonnay and some would argue our greatest white wine. This is typical of the style with delicate fine grapefruit and cereal nuances, lightly spice and cinnamon, plus a little creaminess. The palate is restrained (this was tasted eight months prior to release) yet there is the classic combination of power and delicacy. Although it was picked quite ripe it's still quite reserved." SCORE 97/100 CELLAR 12 years

Ray Jordan's 2010 wa wine guide
"A recent vertical tasting for Vintage Cellars' customers has confirmed the wisdom of Leeuwin's conversion to screw caps from 2003. Quite simply, the still youthful 2005 (18.8pts) and the 2007 confirm their places as being among Australia's 20 greatest white wines."
John Jens, Western Suburbs Weekly, April 2010
"94 points - Polished, focused, fresh and vibrant, with a subtle interplay of pear, hazelnut, tropical fruit and tobacco aromas and flavors mingling effectively and gaining intensity as the finish persists. Seamless and inviting, this should age beautifully. Drink now through 2020."
Wine Spectator Insider, May 2010
"Firmer and tighter than last year's '06, 2007 Art Series Chardonnay seems to have all of the attributes required to make it a must-have wine for any Chardonnay lover. There is finesse here and layers of fruit which peel gently away to reveal a golden core. Like the 2007s in Burgundy, this wine is built around its stunning, cliff-hanger acidity and naked energy. It is a crime to drink it early, but we don't mind a little flirting with the law!"
Matthew Jukes, 100 Best Australian Wines 2010, May 2010
"Another year, another great Art Series - what a tremendous line up of successive vintages Margaret River has presented of late. Zesty grapefruit, lemon blossom and just-picked white peach amid cashew and nutmeg oak. Backward and lively, it finishes with lingering minerality."
Tyson Stelzer, Wine 100, Tyson Stelzer
"Beautiful, fresh but full palate, a lovely ripe Ogen melon breadth to this. Fantastic fruit and clarity here. Tangy and juicy but has breadth of fruit."
Tom Cannavan, www.wine-pages.com 2010
"93 points - Light, hazy yellow. Expressive, high-pitched aromas of lemon zest, orange, dried fig and talc, plus a hint of white pepper; picks up notes of allspice and mace with air. Taut and sharply focused, offering fresh citrus flavors and deeper notes of bitter apple skin and marzipan. A dusty mineral quality carries through the long, chewy, faintly sweet finish. Offers an impressive interplay of liveliness and depth."
Josh Raynold, International Wine Cellar, July/August 2010
"Pale, bright straw-green; fragrant grapefruit, melon and white peach aromas, the oak subtle and integrated, are followed by an exceptionally intense and long palate, the alcohol lost in the sea of flavour. Screwcap. 14.5% alc. Rating 96 To 2022"
James Halliday, Australian Wine Companion, 2011 Edition
"The 2007 vintage is right on style, showing its usual depth of fruit, excellent oak handling and slow evolution. Peach, cumquat, dusty spices and gun flint. There's obvious winemaking influence on the palate, with oak spices, but the rich fruit carries it. I thought the alcohol - 14.5% - tended to accentuate the grip on the wine's finish, but liked the flavours and tightness. Like previous vintages, it needs a little time and will age indefinately."
Nick Bulleid MW, www.gourmettravellerwine.com.au, August 2010

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