Wine of the Week: Elbourne 2019 ‘The Grace’ Chardonnay

The Hunter Valley region isn’t short on amazing wines, so it takes some serious care and dedication for a small winery to stand out from the crowd.

Elbourne Wines have built a strong name and a loyal following over the last quarter-century — not to mention a coveted “five star” ranking from wine critic James Halliday.

This boutique family business, open to guests by appointment only, specialises small-batch, handcrafted wines that showcase the Hunter Valley region.

Founders Adam Elbourne and Alexys Ward use proudly “old-school” winemaking traditions, with everything hand-picked and pruned, for a true “quality over quantity” process. Each season produces just 50 to 250 cases for each wine.

‘The Grace’ (named after their daughter) is their multi-award-winning flagship Chardonnay, made from nearly 40-year-old vines.

“Every November we release this single vineyard,” says Adam. “We make about 200 dozen only. So this is a really small batch.”

Their popular 2019 vintage offers something a little rarer. Due to the hot drought year in the region, it produced a richer, rounder flavour than the Hunter’s usual fare — “exceptional fruit weight balanced by a good acid seam”.

The maturation process, using the highest quality French oak barrels, gives it a tight palate structure, hints of nuttiness, and strong potential for cellaring.

“It’s got that nice creaminess, and a nice bit of vanilla from the oak,” says Adam.

“It’s a wine you’ll want to have with food: creamy cheese, risotto, maybe a creamy pasta. It’s perfect with oysters.”

The 2019 vintage is now being retired, with the few remaining bottles now kept in reserve by the winemaker.

However, Starts at 60 readers can get exclusive access to this reserve stock — delivered straight from the cellar door — for just a few more days.

Elbourne Wines and Unovino have made the 2019 ‘The Grace’ Chardonnay available to Starts at 60 readers at special discount — but only 50 bottles, offered on a “first in, best dressed” basis, and only until Sunday 4 August, 2024.

Enter the code STARTSAT60 at checkout for 10% off your purchase on ‘The Grace’ Chardonnay — or any other bottle available on unovino.com.au.

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