Squawking Magpie ‘The Chatterer’ 2014 Pinot Gris, and 2014 and 2013 Chardonnays

FEATURED WINES IN THIS REVIEW

• Squawking Magpie ‘The Chatterer’ Hawke’s Bay Pinot Gris 2014
  Pinot Gris from New Zealand - Hawke's Bay

  Review Date : 24-Mar-2015

  ☆☆☆☆☆

  Bright, light golden-hued straw-yellow colour with a slight blush. The nose is soft, full and accessible with aromas of ripe apricots, yellow stonefruits and honey with mineral nuances and a little floral lift. Dry to taste and medium-full bodied, the flavours of apricots, bitter yellow stonefruits and kernels are light and restrained. The wine has good weight and presence, revealing some fruit richness and sweetness in the glass. The mouthfeel is fresh and crisp, and the wine follows a fine-textured thread that leads to a light, stonefruit and nutty nuanced finish. This is a dry Pinot Gris with light apricot and stonefruit kernel flavours and nutty notes. Serve with Mediterranean fare over the next 2+ years. Single vineyard estate fruit fermented in stainless-steel to 13.5% alc. and 4.5 g/L RS. 16.5-/20 Mar 2015 RRP $19.95
• Squawking Magpie ‘The Chatterer’ Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2014
  Chardonnay from New Zealand - Hawke's Bay

  Review Date : 24-Mar-2015

  ☆☆☆☆☆

  Single vineyard estate fruit tank-fermented to 13.75% alc., the wine aged in 20% new oak, the wine having minimal lees work and no MLF. Bright straw-yellow colour, paler on edge. The nose is light and tightly held with fresh and bright citrus fruit aromas alongside nuances of toasty ok, minerals and nuts. The aromatics show a little lift. Dry to taste and medium-bodied, tightly bound and focussed citrus fruit flavours are the feature on palate. The fruit has some spicy, toasty and nutty oak elements adding interest. This is clean and refreshing with the acidity lending liveliness to the mouthfeel, and the wine flows with good energy following a fine phenolic line to a long, citrus-fruited finish. This is a youthfully tight, fresh and lively citrus-fruited Chardonnay with some subtle oak input. Serve with seafood and poultry over the next 3 years. 17.0/20 Mar 2015 RRP $19.95
• Squawking Magpie ‘The Chatterer’ Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay 2013
  Chardonnay from New Zealand - Hawke's Bay

  Review Date : 24-Mar-2015

  ☆☆☆☆☆

  Bright, even straw-yellow colour with light golden hues. This has a full and deep bouquet with moderately concentrated aromas of stonefruits, nuts and oxidative complexities, along with a waxy fruit and oak amalgam. Dry to taste and medium-bodied, the flavours are light and shy. Stonefruits, nuts, lanolin and waxy elements are harmoniously melded with oak and oxidative flavours. This has a rounded core, soft acidity and a smooth-flowing presence, leading to a light, but lingering nutty finish. This is a light flavoured Chardonnay with stonefruit, nuts, and waxy notes along with oxidative complexities. Serve with most white meat courses over the next 2-3 years. Single vineyard estate fruit barrel-fermented to 13.75% alc., the wine aged 15 months in 10% new -oak, the wine given lees contact and 50% undergoing MLF. 16.5/20 Mar 2015 RRP $19.95