Garagiste Terre Maritime Chardonnay 2023 750ml

The Terre Maritime is drawn from several rows of Chardonnay in the top corner of Merricks Grove. Barney Flanders has always felt this parcel results in a superb and unique Chardonnay—in this part of the vineyard, the 27-year-old vines are rooted in brown soils rather than the more common reddish dirt of the area. The plot sits at 90 metres and faces slightly east, offering the vines a cooler, more sheltered aspect. There’s therefore less vigour here than in the rest of the vineyard and the bunches are a touch smaller. As a result, the fruit from this parcel tends to make a wine that has real intensity without forgoing the finesse we associate with Garagiste Chardonnay.

In the low-yielding 2023 season, Barney only had one puncheon of Terre Chardonnay fruit to work with, so played things straight in the cellar. The fruit was pressed as whole bunches to a 500 litre puncheon for ferment, followed by a nine-month maturation on gross lees. What you get with Maritime is a frank expression of season and this small unique plot. It’s always salty, chalky, complex and long, and 2023 is a chip off the old block.