2021 Tokara Reserve Collection Chardonnay

This wine displays a vibrant light straw colour. Aromas of lemon curd, limeskin, oatmeal and toasted almond emanate from the glass. The wine enters the palate with bold, ripe yellow citrus flavours leading to a creamy mid-palate. There is a continuous saline focus and feeling of freshness throughout that suggests this wine will age beautifully for at least a decade

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Viticulture

This 100% Chardonnay is made from grapes grown on Tokara’s Stellenbosch farm on the slopes of the Simonsberg Mountain Range The soils are all Oakleaf from Granitic origin with varying levels of Sandstone boulders in the profile. It is a deep clay rich soil, with gravelly elements. The slopes vary between South-Eastern to North Western aspects at altitudes between 300 and 360m above sea level.

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Vinification

The grapes were de-stemmed, crushed and pressed to stainless steel tanks for settling overnight or whole bunch pressed after a night in the cold room with one night’s settling and subsequent racking. Only the free run juice from the best blocks is used for the Reserve
Collection Chardonnay. The juice from the de-stemmed batches was then racked and run off to barrel for fermentation with selected yeast. After fermentation the wine was topped and left on the lees with regular lees stirring for 9 months. 50% of the barrels were allowed to complete malolactic fermentation. The barrels were all tight grain French oak 228 litre of which 42% were new the rest were 2nd and 3rd fill barrels. The wine was bottled in December 2021.

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Recommendation

Best served with grilled fish - roasted white meats or creamy white cheese