Museum Release Art Series Chardonnay

"In many ways the most Burgundian of any of the Leeuwin releases, this will rank up there with the best to date. There’s a waxy light mealy aroma which picks up nuances of limestone and spice with a trace of grapefruit. But it is the palate that really distinguishes it. There is an austerity with the minerally chalky feel that cuts through the fruit extending to a finish of extraordinary length. Precision and focus harness a wine of great power and poise before dry savoury edges lift the finish.”

"Preservation of pristine fruit characters through vinification and maturation remains at the heart of winemaking. This of course starts in the vineyard where observations, reaction and mitigation of environmental patterns are key to vineyard management practices. The vineyard blocks have a north facing aspects and the rows run in an east-west direction. The morphology of the Gingin clone sees the berries ripen differently. The smaller berries usually possess slightly higher sugars and acidity. Vintage takes place in mid-February to early March and the grapes (about 2-3 kilos per vine) are hand-harvested when they have reached a point of ‘energy, bone and pop!’ This translates to intense pure fruit aromas, richness of flavour, fine al dente textures and fresh indelible acidity. These are the hallmark qualities of Gingin clone chardonnay. I have often wondered at the clone’s provenance and passing resemblance to Meursault. Pale colour. Intense lemon curd, grapefruit, peach, tropical fruit aromas with underlying roasted cashew/ hazel nut notes. Lovely grapefruit, lemon curd, tropical fruits, fine persistent chalky textures, attractive mid plate volume and fresh long indelible acidity. Finishes al dente, with savoury oak note. Still elemental but wonderfully balanced with the fruit density and torque to last the distance. Now – 2036"

"The 2019 Art Series Chardonnay is rich and savory but pure and saline too. There is white peach, red apples, curry leaf and brine. The way the flavor moves across the palate is testament to the phenolics that course through the wine; it’s all at a perfect intersect of fruit power, tannin and perfectly judged acidity. The flavor stains the palate and lingers in an unravelling spool of thread in the mouth long after the wine has gone. A stupendously good wine."

"Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay on release is an achingly painful thing to drink, because once you've known the utter pleasure these wines bring at 5 or more years of age, it becomes a mess of cognitive dissonance to drink them so young. They are closed, taut, coiled, but more than anything, populated by rippling fruit that undulates untold through the interminably long finish. They typically don't reveal their kaleidoscopic spice and prismatic fruit flavour until a little further down the track. So, all I can humbly do here, is place the vintage in context. Through the lens of the cool year, this glitters with a purity and finesse that is deeply attractive. Aligned in style with the 2017.”

"Gloriously perfumed, pure and precise, with heady lily opening up. Softly smoky, slow-burn oak suffuses the palate without detracting from the classic, fresh-cut and succulent poached pear, with firmer al dente pear skin and a touch of custard apple sweetness. Lanolin, cinnamon and lemon puff biscuit bring texture and nuance. Terrific length, poise and intensity, with lingering fruit and perfume. Archetypal Art Series."

"One of Australia’s most iconic wines and certainly our most famous Chardonnay. That means it can never put a foot wrong – the clamour of horror would be deafening if a release fell short, whereas if it maintains the incredible standards it has set over decades, there is little more than a ho-hum. Well, ho-hum, this is stunning stuff. Just a brilliant wine. World class. An extraordinary blend of opulence, fresh energy, purity of flavour, intensity and length. Stonefruit notes, lemon zest, oystershell and almond notes. Hints of mandarin and peach and even a touch of ripe mango. The oak is integrating well and will become even more so in the coming years. Focus is laser-like. Glorious now, but there is so much more ahead, with more complexity and tertiary flavours to emerge as it ages. Expect this to be thrilling winelovers in a decade, if there is any left. This release, as they all are, will inevitably be compared with the finest from both Australia and Burgundy. It sits very comfortably among the best. Wonderful now, but it has so much more to reveal.”

““Whoever made this understands Chardonnay” was perhaps, the understatement of our blind tasting, in a pre-reveal discussion. The reason this wine has become iconic is that it perenially delivers exceptional quality. Fragrant with citrus blossom and toasted cashew at first, with a latent, taut, muscularity and a steely acidity. While it’s built for the long haul, this has more than enough flesh and generosity to enjoy now. Nectarine and grapefruit flesh, rye bread, lemon zest and a dusting of sweet spice from oak show its complexity, and foreshadow the multi-layered experience this will become with age.”

"It’s interesting to note the more refined, tighter style that Leeuwin has delivered over the last handful of years. They are still powerful, and rich in oak, but show less alcohol warmth and what you might call ‘breathiness’ these days. Anyway, a very good vintage for Chardonnay was 2019. Pear, lemon oil, grapefruit, ginger, cinnamon and cedar oak, with a distinctly savoury sort of hazelnut character, along with some vanilla and white flower perfume. It’s tight, powerful, saline and precise, with a firm flintiness to texture, quite chalky, and superb spicy length and an almost umami aftertaste. I’m thinking grapefruits and biscuits, grilled nuts, even citrus zest. And for all its power and oak, it keeps itself racy and refined. It’s a cracking release.”

"Pale lemon, with a stylish nose of fennel, preserved lemon and cigar box spice. A delicate frame of spicy oak sits nicely alongside the fruit, finishing with toasted brioche and mealy flavours. Then a saline edge kicks in. There's tension yet generosity to the fruit. This is an outstanding wine, nothing feels forced, the fruit has been picked with precision timing. This lives up to its mantle as one of Australia's best, a brilliant release."

"Fresh almond on first taste, then fresh citrus and white nectarine flavours dance on the palate. Subtle oak, fine silky texture. Will age wonderfully”.