Shaw + Smith M3 Chardonnay 2023

Style: Aiming for elegance, restraint and the ability to age, acid is bright and there’s generosity of flavour. Typically it shows white flowers, citrus, and nectarine notes.

Growing and Making: Another cooler than average season with some influence from La Niña weather patterns. The season was cool to begin with, which meant a smaller crop formed during fruit- set. Then it was a mild summer that warmed up towards the end, adding flavour and ripeness to the fresh acidity. Hand-picked grapes are pressed as whole bunches, and then squeezed gently but firmly in an air-bag press. The juice goes into barrels made of the finest French oak, for fermentation. After about 9 months in oak, first fermenting, then going through the magical ‘malolactic’ ferment, the batches are blended to stainless steel tanks before bottling.