$129.99
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Region: Huon Valley, Tasmania
Grape: Chardonnay
First Glance: Scintillating freshness, energetic, saline finish
Acclaim: 96 points
Paul and Gilli Lipscombe, an ex-London couple, decided on giving up their busy big-city lives, to pursue a more meaningful existence. For the English couple, this meant growing vines and making wines at the very edge of the world. An admirable aspiration for sure, and no mean feat! After a few years of learning the ropes – doing winemaking and viticulture degrees, as well as stints in wine regions in France, New Zealand, Oregon and Margaret River, the couple settled on a vineyard they would call their own in the Huon Valley, Tasmania; about as far south as south goes.
As one might imagine, this fringe position is a great risk - great reward environment, and the resulting Pinot Noir and Chardonnay is stunningly beautiful, balanced on a knifes edge with scintillating acids and soaring expressiveness. The 2021 season made for low yields, but beautifully detailed fruit. The top range Hudulfolk Chardonnay is made a little differently than most. Destemmed and soaked on skins for several days prior to pressing and fermenting in amphora, then aged for 3 months in old oak. A very textural, mineral and intense wine, with layers and layers to unfold with time in the glass.
The Review:
96 points, Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front
This is an exceptional chardonnay. It’s elegant, powerful, lengthy and more. It tastes of crushed fennel and white peach, nectarine and custard powder, though it also boasts flint and riverstone characters. There are some estery notes on the nose, which then lead into those fennel notes, and perhaps towards cracked wheat as well. All this would be enough but it also has quite wonderful texture, like velvet on rocks. The length of the finish – edged with grapefruit – is the final sealer. The quality of this wine is right up there but, besides, it’s simply a beautiful wine to drink.
