Nous Chardonnay 2023

This is nuanced, pure Chardonnay. Citrus and stonefruit meld with mealy undertones. Its compact density is beautifully balanced by fine boned acid structure. Oak use is harmonious and judicious. Watch it evolve in the glass over a few hours, or if you’re patient, it’ll be even more thoroughly engaging in 5 to 8 years.

The 2023 comes from a tiny yield of 250 grams per vine in a growing season marked by a wet winter, a mild frost-free spring, and well-timed warm summer days with some beneficial rainfall. Fruit was hand harvested (obviously) and gently pressed straight to barrel for wild yeast fermentation, with malolactic fermentation occurring in spring. It was bottled after 18 months in barrel with no fining or filtration, producing just 700 bottles of restraint, definition and clarity.

From their tiny, close-planted vineyard in Marlborough, husband-and-wife team Murray and Rachael Cook of Nous produce a single wine that is the epitome of great, modern New Zealand Chardonnay. In 2017 they purchased their 4 hectare site straddling Marlborough’s Brancott and Omaka Valleys, planting 0.29 hectares of vines by hand on a north-east-facing site of clay soils. Established with real clarity of ethos, right from the beginning it was organically and biodynamically farmed, and is proudly New Zealand’s smallest Biogro certified organic vineyard. It’s a lot of hard work, ‘hands in the ground’ ambition, experience, and understanding of a special place.