Shaw + Smith Lenswood Vineyard Chardonnay 2016

Decanter, 97/100
Located in the cool Lenswood sub-region, this vineyard, originally planted for fizz, produces a pale, precise Chardonnay. Gentle lees-stirring sheathes the rapier- like palate of Golden Delicious, grapefruit sorbet and lime zest, with a hint of struck match. Ageing for 10 months in 500-litre French oak puncheons adds delicate vanilla nuances, allowing the crystalline fruit to shine.

James Halliday, 97/100
A compelling wine; exudes power with lots of flavour but doesn’t appear overworked or too big. Kicks off with ginger flower, more stone fruit this vintage, some citrus (especially mandarin), and complex leesy notes with creamed honey. Deep, with a luscious palate of woodsy spices and balanced oak. Complex, yet keeps a lightness of touch.

Huon Hooke, 96/100
Light to medium-yellow colour, with a complex bouquet which shows dominant lemon citrus fruit. The wine is tight and fresh, precise and focused, subtle, delicate and yet intense and very long. A superb chardonnay with the potential to develop well with age.

James Suckling, 96/100, Top 100 Australian Wines 2018
This offers impressive complexity and depth. Really tight-wound and reductive with citrus and peaches abound. The palate has a sleek, composed and linear style and really impressively judged ripeness. There’s a zesty edge to the fruit. Elegant and long.

Wine Front, 94/100
It’s in that floral, racy mode of chardonnay, flint-edged and sparkling with crisp acidity. The perfume is subdued to an extent, but you find wet slate, grapefruit pith, lemon blossom, sweet spice. Flavours tend to leaner chardonnay grape characters, citrus and pith, squeeze of lime, a sense of minerality. It’s tense and taut, linear and fine. It’s quite something, in its style.