2022 Hell Freezes Over Chardonnay

COLOUR | Light golden straw.

AROMA | A pretty bouquet of lifted spice, nectarine, pear, melon, fresh apple, cashew, chalk, nougat and mandarin.

PALATE | Soft acid keeps the wine buoyant and rolling along the palate. A tight texture of citrus flavours slowly roll along and freshes out. This chardonnay has a lovely piercing quality, really showing what can be achieved with the best sites in the Piccadilly Valley. This is serious vino and will make a sunny day that little bit more special.

The 2022 season began with promising rainfall in South Australia, replenishing soils for a strong start. However, severe weather events—including frost and a devastating hailstorm—caused major fruit loss in the Barossa Valley’s Holy Grail vineyard. Despite setbacks, unaffected northern vineyards performed well. Mild summer conditions aided vine growth, and a late hailstorm had minimal impact thanks to mature canopies. McLaren Vale fared better, and Clare Valley excelled due to its slower ripening. Although yields were reduced, the vintage delivered wines with strong aromatics, balanced acidity, and vibrant flavours—particularly in Shiraz, which stood out in quality.

WINEMAKING | The fruit was handpicked in late March & transported to our Marananga winery, where it was crushed and then pressed. The juice was then fermented together in a stainless steel tank. Fermented over 21 days, with a partial malolactic fermentation initially in stainless steel and then finished in new and old puncheons.

MATURATION | The wine was matured on lees with
no battonage for 12 months in 20% new French oak
puncheons and hogsheads, with the other 30% of the wine aged for 12 months in stainless steel.

CLOSURE | Diam Cork
VOLUME | 750ml
VARIETAL | Chardonnay
REGION | Adelaide Hills
ALCOHOL (% vol) | 13.4%