French barrique fermented (27% new) using 80% malo-lactic and aged for 14 months, the 2009 Reserve Marlborough Chardonnay offers lashings of oak and butterscotch on the nose over a core of warm apricots, tropical fruit, pineapple paste and marzipan. Medium bodied, tight and crisp in the mouth, there’s quite a lot of cedar here for the fruit weight with a long butter laced finish. Drinking now, it should keep to 2014. Importer: Ste Michelle Wine Estates, Woodinville, WA