SMITH & SHETH CRU HERETAUNGA CHARDONNAY 2023

Winery notes (2023 Vintage)
"Beautiful bright Lisbon lemon colour. Very open, delicious aromas of lemon, oat biscuits and white peach with a beautiful twist of creaminess. A tense lemon zest and salty feel on the palate becomes richer with warm, grilled peach, roasted cashew and beautiful French oak, finishing long, savoury and dry.

100% hand-harvested fruit was whole-bunch pressed and barrel fermented in a blend of new and aged French oak barriques and puncheons. 53% new oak. 100% indigenous yeasts and 60% malolactic fermentation with a small amount of lees stirring during 11 months maturation in the barrel. A further 6 months maturation on lees in tank took place prior to bottling."

5 Stars & 95/100 Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, April 2025 (2023 Vintage)
"The enticing bouquet shows ripe peach, lemon pith, vanilla, and roasted hazelnut aromas with a flinty overtone. The concentrated palate delivers fleshy texture backed by beautifully pitched acidity, making it refined and stylish. At its best: now to 2033."

94/100 David Walker Bell, WineFolio.co.nz, May 2025 (2023 Vintage)
"A powerful bouquet has a distinctive oatmeal note, alongside familiar nectarine, grapefruit, apple and lemon. It delivers in spades across the palate, with a powerful, vibrant richness and juiciness. There is spicy oak, but swallowed by the fruit, and it is another with an excellent persistence."

Rated Excellent & 93/100 Cameron Douglas MS, March 2025 (2023 Vintage)
"Another excellent expression of Chardonnay from the SS team, aromas and flavours of peach and grapefruits, whipped cream with a lactic quality. There’s no mistaking the oak signature with wood, spice and smoke highlights. Delicious on the palate with a satin-creamy rounded touch, contrasted by the acid line and impacts of from wood and spice. It’s so totally drinkable. On its own or with food I think you’ll like this style and expression. Best from late 2025 through 2029."