A single-vineyard Chardonnay from Bilancia, the small Hawke's Bay label run by Warren Gibson and Lorraine Leheny. The fruit comes from the Kaikora Vineyard in Ōtāne in Central Hawke's Bay, planted on the region's ancient pakohe (argillite) soils to the UCD15 clone on its own roots.
The project highlights small, individual sites across Hawke's Bay, and Central Hawke's Bay's moderately cooler climate gives the fruit a distinctive, tensile profile. Expect ripe stonefruit and citrus with a streak of flint, pink grapefruit and saline minerality, balanced by a firm, food-friendly backbone of acidity.
Hand-picked, whole-bunch pressed and fermented with indigenous yeast in French oak barriques. The wine rests around 11 months in barrel before bottling, with no fining or cold stabilisation.
Vintages may vary. Email us at hello@barrelandbatch.com.au if you would like confirmation.