Magnum – 2021 Chardonnay

Chardonnay is winemaker Andrew Windsor’s favourite white wine to make. He keeps it natural (no added yeast), barrel fermented, robust (aged 16 months in new and neutral oak barrels), and loooonnnnnngggggg. The result is a well-balanced, beautiful, cool-climate Chardonnay that keeps on giving!

90 points – This is a rich and creamy Chardonnay offering a load of tropical fruits. The nose offers aromas of pineapple, mango and star fruits while the palate is gracefully rich and dense with notes of vanilla and caramel, tempered with lemon curd, white peach, pineapple and an array of tropical goodness. Pairings: crab cake, butternut squash pasta – Carl Boucher at Carl’s Wine Club.

TASTING NOTES:
The chardonnay grapes were hand harvested and left in whole clusters while gently pressed to preserve the freshness and vibrancy of the delicate flavours. The juice was Barrel fermented and aged in small and large French Oak barrels for 6 months. This wine is rich and well balanced with ripe tropical fruit mingling with delicate lemon blossoms.

WINEMAKING:
Hand harvested fruit was picked over a two-week period to get a range of ripeness starting in mid-September. The fruit was whole cluster pressed and the settled in tank, before being transferred to a mix of French barriques and puncheons. The wine was allowed to ferment naturally and completed MLF by late February. We then let it mature in oak for another 4 months before racking and light filtration.
WINEMAKERS COMMENTS:
2021 was a vintage of extremes. The Spring started off cool with intermittent rain, with average bud burst and bloom. Mid-June brough the ‘heat dome’, with more than two weeks of temperatures over 35C, topping out at 47C. This caused the vineyard to shut down to protect from the heat. 30+C days continued through July and August, exceeding the historical average for the south Okanagan. August brought smoke cover with wildfires raging for the latter half of the month. Maverick started harvest on September 1st with ripe Sauvignon Blanc and rushed to the finish line with the last of the Bordeaux reds harvested in mid-October. The 2021 vintage is showing to make powerful wines with great acidity.

NOTES:
Production – only 16 cases produced
Alcohol – 12.5%
Varietals – 100% Chardonnay
Vinification – hand-picked, whole clusted pressed, settled in tank, and then fermented naturally in a mix of new and neutral French barriques and puncheons. Aged 8 months before racking and light filtration
Cellaring – cellar up to 10 years