Giant Steps : Yarra Valley Chardonnay 2022

Characteristics and Tasting Notes for Giant Steps Yarra Valley Chardonnay 2022

Tasting Notes

Appearance
This wine reveals a clear, brilliant hue of pale straw yellow, enhanced by delicate green highlights that reflect its freshness.

Nose
The aromatic bouquet displays remarkable precision, blending scents of just-ripened orchard fruits, such as apple and pear, with notes of citrus and white peach. Subtle floral and mineral touches intertwine with fine nuances of hazelnut and toasted almond from its careful ageing.

Palate
The attack is lively and energetic, carried by a fine minerality and citrusy flavours. The mid-palate offers a silky, creamy texture, perfectly balanced by a crisp acidity reminiscent of great cool-climate wines. The finish lingers on saline, refreshing notes.

Food and Wine Pairings

This cuvée will pair beautifully with barbecued prawns enhanced with a citrus sauce, pan-seared John Dory with capers, or roasted asparagus served with a mustard vinaigrette and flaked almonds. It will also pair very well with white meats or vegetarian dishes.

Serving and Cellaring

To fully appreciate this wine, it is recommended to serve it at a temperature between 10 and 12 °C, ideally in a wide-bowled glass suited to this type of grape variety, allowing all its aromatic nuances to be released.

The Elegance of a Great Chardonnay from the Yarra Valley by Giant Steps

The Estate

Founded in 1997 by Phil Sexton, the Giant Steps estate is located in the renowned wine region of the Yarra Valley, in the state of Victoria, Australia. Recognised for its parcel-by-parcel approach and minimal-intervention winemaking, this prestigious brand has established itself as an essential reference among cool-climate wines. Since 2020, the estate has belonged to the Jackson Family Wines family group, which continues to uphold the estate's exacting standards of quality. Today, technical direction is overseen by Melanie Chester, who continues to showcase these exceptional terroirs through pure, elegant cuvées.

The Vineyard

The grapes come from a mosaic of parcels spread across the Yarra Valley, on the historic lands of the Wurundjeri people. Sourcing is evenly split, with half the fruit coming from the cooler, higher-altitude areas of the upper valley, and the other half from the milder sectors. The vines benefit from rigorous viticultural practices, focused on low yields and entirely hand-picked harvests, ensuring optimal quality and perfect berry integrity.

The Vintage

The 2022 season stood out for its exceptional quality despite sharply reduced yields, nearly 40% below normal. A particularly cool, wet and stormy spring disrupted flowering, considerably reducing the number of bunches. The climate then became drier and warmer through to December, followed by a mild summer that encouraged slow berry ripening. Timely rainfall in January helped refresh the vines just before harvest, which took place under ideal conditions between February and March.

Winemaking and Ageing

After a hand-picked harvest, the bunches are chilled overnight before undergoing a gentle whole-bunch pressing. The juice is then transferred by gravity into 500-litre French oak barrels, 15% of which are new and 85% one or more wines old. Fermentation begins naturally through indigenous yeasts and lasts around ten days. Only a small proportion of the lots, close to 10%, undergoes malolactic fermentation. The wine is then aged on its lees in barrels until blending and bottling under screwcap, which took place in October 2022 at the estate's own winery.

Grape Variety

This cuvée is made exclusively from Chardonnay.