Editorial: In two minds about Chardonnay

Wine distribution and marketing company Vinimark recently sent a selection of 16 examples of Chardonnay with the intention of demonstrating the “depth and breadth” of its portfolio. However, while there were a some very good wines, I found others confounding. Chardonnay’s potential to make truly great wines is not in question (see columnist Fintan Kerr on the subject here), but it must be acknowledged that the variety is also capable of being a source of major disappointment, and there are a few reasons why this might happen.

Chardonnay is produced in various areas around the country, leading to a wide range of quality levels and any letdown might simply be due to lower quality grapes. I think the De Krans Wild Ferment Unwooded 2023 from Calitzdorp (87 pts – R85 a bottle) is exceptionally neutral and I’m not sure Chardonnay should be cultivated in the semi-desert of Klein Karoo.

As we all know, Chardonnay is a versatile grape that can be made in various styles, from crisp and unoaked to rich and buttery. That’s all very well but producers sometimes come up short in attempting to cater for the tastes of a particular market segment. Take Fat Bastard 2023 from Robertson, which is so lean and green as to be Sauvignon Blanc-esque (87 pts – R120). Rustenberg Wild Ferment Unwooded 2023 (87 pts – R120) is perhaps also attempting something inspired by Chablis but the result is altogether too bland and it’s perplexing that the property that also produces the hugely accomplished Five Soldiers feels compelled these days to operate towards the bottom end of the market.

Conversely, the 2023 from Simonsberg-Paarl property Glen Carlou (87 pts – R190) is predictable and undistinguished in terms of its citrus-vanilla flavour profile and creamy texture. Lanzerac 2022 (89 pts – R195) is also oak-driven but has slightly more detail.

There is also the issue of expectation bias. The Cap Maritime 2022 from Upper Hemel-en-Aarde Valley as made by the talented Gottfried Mocke of Boekenhoutskloof was the most expensive wine in the set at R445 and I had high hopes of it but ultimately found it sound rather than thrilling – I rated it 91.

Lastly, technical correctness is relevant and while there is lots to like about Groot Constantia 2023 (R290), I have a small concern about bacterial spoilage (which I have raised with the winery) and consequently won’t be rating it for now.

It wasn’t all doom and gloom, however. Part of the commercial success of Chardonnay is it makes easily accessible wines at an affordable price and particular credit to Darling Cellars for the Quercus Gold 2023 for over-delivering at R75 a bottle. I liked its generous fruit expression, texture and tangy acidity, rating it 89. In a slightly more exotic style, Vineyard Selection 2023 from Stellenbosch cellar Kleine Zalze also offers quite good quality relative to price – I rated it 88 and it sells for R82 a bottle. Perfectly drinkable but costing more are Rietvallei 2023 from Robertson (89 pts – R150) and David Finlayson 2023 from Stellenbosch (88 pts – R175).

In ongoing effort to resist score inflation, I will continue to insist that 90 points on the 100-point quality scale is an important threshold and, apart from Cap Maritime, another five of the Vinimark wines make this level, these being:

94
Shannon Oscar Brown 2022 – Elgin (previously reviewed here)
Price: R345

93
Lismore 2021 – Cape South Coast (previously reviewed here)
Price: R320

92
La Bri 2022 – Franschhoek (previously reviewed here)
Price: R180

91
Sutherland 2021 – Elgin
Price: R200

90
Creation 2023 – Cape South Coast
Price: R260

The average price of the six wines to rate 90-plus is R292 a bottle whereas that of the other 10 is R148 which suggests that you get what you pay for, and I suppose that’s not so confounding, after all. If you want to drink really outstanding Chardonnay, then look to the likes of Crystallum, Leeu Passant, the Estate Reserve from Lismore, Restless River and Storm but expect to pay over R500 a bottle.