UNKEL LUTA ZEPHYR CHARDONNAY 2021

Unkel is a small organic vineyard & minimal intervention winery run by husband and wife duo Rob and Kate Burley, located in the picturesque growing region of Nelson/Tasman, New Zealand. Our wines are lovingly handcrafted in order to respect and portray a true sense of time & place.

“Unkel” (variation of the spelling of Uncle), is about working with Mother Nature in the Vineyard to produce the highest quality fruit that we can obtain from her. Once in the winery, rather than being that hands-on, overbearing parent or father figure, you can think of us more like that cruisy, fun, slightly wild Uncle in your life.

Winery notes (2021 Vintage)
"Fresh, delicate aromas of green apple, almond, apricot, honeysuckle, dried flowers and flint. The palate is textural and concentrated with bright stone fruits dancing alongside biscotti notes with a creamy yet fresh and saline finish.

60% of the grapes for this wine were picked from a more sun-exposed aspect of the vineyard and the remaining 40% picked from a more shaded, higher vigour parcel 10 days later. Whole-bunch pressed and settled overnight before being racked to and fermented in a mixture of puncheon and barrique.

Aged on gross lees for 10 months, then racked to stainless steel and aged for a further 6 months before being bottled in October 2022."

92/100 David Walker Bell, WineFolio.co.nz, May 2024 (2021 Vintage)
"A Chardonnay from the team at Unkel in Nelson – sealed under cork. A pale golden green colour. Crisply perfumed with quince, apricot marmalade, lemon candy, tarragon, hay, and breadcrumb. There is keen acidity – quite direct and saline that highlights the ripeness to the palate. An almond nuttiness of oak leads into the more savoury notes of umami, soy, fennel and dried orange peel. The texture is like a polished pebble – slippery and rounded. Finishing dry with good length."