Blank Canvas Chardonnay Reed Vineyard Marlborough 2023

James Suckling 96/100 punten
"A single-vineyard, high-volume chardonnay with apples, smoke, lightly toasted vanilla and matchstick. Full-bodied, yet there is tension and intensity. Shows excellent length, going on and on. Drink or hold."

Rebecca Gibb MW (Vinous) 94/100 punten
 "At this young stage, the 2023 Chardonnay Reed Vineyard shows its winemaking choices in its struck flint aromas and smoky bacon- like flavors. Some might find that o!-putting, but those who like their Chardonnays funky rather than fruit-filled will enjoy this. The 2023 has a piercing personality and a line of acidity that sings through its pure core. You can expect substance and richness of texture on the mid-palate and through to the finish. Savory, smoky flavors and touches of white stone fruit and citrus linger long. This is young and firm—another year in bottle would serve it well."

Cameron Douglas MS 94/100 punten
"An excellent bouquet and palate, saline and fresh, stone fruit and wood smoke, mineral and baking spice scents. A satin-cream mouthfeel as the wine touches followed by flavours of grapefruit peel the peach, apple then a layer of spices from wood and lees effect. Harmoniously dry with complexity and texture. Best drinking from day of purchase or early 2025 through 2028+."

Robert Parker 93/100 punten
"The 2023 Reed Chardonnay leads with toasty reduction, curry leaves, yellow peach, salted nuts and brine. In the mouth, the wine is carried in this same style, and it works so well. The curry-leaf character really is an accentuated character here, so if you're not into it, it won't work so well for you; but I happen to love it, so I am enjoying the wine immensely. This demands a full-sized Burgundy glass to really make the most of the extension of flavor through the finish. 13.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap."

Jancis Robinson 17,5/20 punten
"The Reed Vineyard is at the confluence of the Wairau and Waihopai Rivers in Central Wairau, owned by Pete and Anne Reed. 100% clone 95. Thin topsoil over stones and clay. Unsettled weather at flowering led to looser bunches and lower yields. Hand-picked. Cloudy, free-run juice spontaneously fermented in oak puncheons (40% new). Spontaneous malo. Matured for 11 months in the same French oak puncheons, and bottled unfined and unfiltered 28 February 2024. TA 5.6 g/l, pH 3.23. Certified Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand and Appellation Marlborough Wine. Marked struck-match flinty aroma. Not excessive unless you don't like this style of barrel-fermented Chardonnay. Like flinty Meursault, this has a clementine aroma and flavour as well as the creamy/mealy richness of the oak. Both mouth-filling and precise with great freshness and length, deep in citrus, just slightly toasty on the aftertaste but not oaky. Totally engaging and hard to spit, with, I suspect, long ageing potential."