Quails’ Gate Chardonnay is made in a style that allows the fruit to be expressed without the domination of oak aging. The goal is to provide a Chardonnay that offers fruit flavours representative of the variety while at the same time to allow a limited amount of oak aging to show through. A portion of the wine underwent malolactic fermentation to give the wine a nice rounded palate and hints of the classic butter chardonnay that is so popular.
The 2009 Chardonnay benefited from an extremely warm summer. The resulting wine is fuller with greater weight than past vintages. A touch of oak offers accents of vanilla and roasted nuts mingling with floral tones. The palate is rich, complex and loaded with flavour. It is a definite keeper for the cellar, and should age well into 2016. It pairs well with medium to strong cheeses, and is a classic with hearty soups. Serve with pan roasted Cornish game hen with smoked paprika, black olives and hand rolled potato and herb gnocchi.