Buttery Chardonnay from Scotchmans Hill AKA give the people what they want

Scotchmans Hill Chardonnay 2014

The best Scotchmans Hill wines are all Chardonnay.

Sure, they make the odd handy Pinot and decent Shiraz, but Chardies are where it’s at. Also, I love the detail on the back of these wines. It’s wine-wanky to get into figures and facts, but hot damn I’m glad to see them. Throw your numbers at me wine world.

Speaking of numbers, the yield here was just 14hl/ha – Grand Cru Burgundy eat your heart out. Such is life when you have a season beset with poor fruit set. Growing grapes is hard.

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Anyway, this is what people look for in Mornington/Bellarine/Geelong/that general Bay area Chardonnay. People want flavour, and wines like this give it. There’s a delicate white peach nose that grows with caramel and condensed milk yeast/solids/oak before a concentrated, even fractionally warming finish. There’s a nice flow of yellow peach fruit through the middle, and that oak plays a role, the flavours tending towards toasty/buttery caramel brulee.

It’s not a subtle wine, but that’s a big part of the appeal. I had it well chilled and the weight and concentration made this an enjoyable drink. It’s perhaps a little broad and warm but stuff it, that’s exactly what the style is all about. Best drinking: 2016-2019. 17.7/20, 92/100. 13.5%, $35. Would I buy it? I’d go a bottle of this for sure.