DAVE BROOKES
HALLIDAY WINE COMPANION
98 POINTS
Ooh-boy the Tolpuddle Chardonnay is in a good place. I guess you could call this vintage a 'classic'. A little more restraint and line than the '23; a little more filigree and nuance, those flinty/struck-match tones a little further back in the mix and woven through the wine in an intricate pattern. White peach, lemon, grapefruit and nectarine fruits are high fidelity and beautifully poised, suffused with soft spice, clover and grapefruit blossom, crushed stone, cinnamon, a murmur of vanillin oak and spiced poached pear, grilled hazelnuts, crème fraîche and a whisper of onshore breeze. Everything is in sharp relief, with the purest of fruit. It's all detail and tension, with a textural glaze of grapefruit pith and a sapid, mineral line that builds like a crescendo before releasing, finishing long and true. It's a stunner.
ANDREW CAILLARD MW
THE VINTAGE JOURNAL
96 POINTS
Pale colour. Beautiful pure grapefruit, verbena, grilled nut aromas with honey/ marzipan, touch lanolin notes. Pure supple and minerally with fresh grapefruit, lemon curd, marzipan flavors, slippery/ saline notes on the mid-palate and high-pitched crisp acidity. Al dente finish with superb mineral length. Very good volume and richness of flavour while possessing tension and vigour. Should age beautifully well if one dares to wait.
HUON HOOKE
THE REAL REVIEW
97 POINTS
Bright light yellow colour with a whiff or reduction early, which cleared a little to reveal acacia honey, lemon essence and hints of snuffed candle. The wine is precise and refined on the tongue, with great intensity of fruit flavour harmoniously intertwined with refreshing acidity, resulting in a seamless whole that glides very long through the aftertaste. Gorgeous chardonnay, and will be long lived.
MIKE BENIIE
THE WINE FRONT
95 POINTS
So, it was very nice to see Michael Hill Smith and Tildie Hill Smith in person, dropping these wines off in Sydney to me. More so that the 2017 chardonnay and pinot accompanied. Good chats ensued, and a kindness to try 2017 versions of these new releases tucked in the sample pack alongside. The 2017 chardonnay is in good form, relaxed now somewhat, saline and minerally, supple and a little pleasing in its chubby way, and savoury, and in very good shape. Hello 2024.
Flint, the main thing here. A struck match and steely mineral combo from first whiff through to last, cool and crisp finish. Smoky, stony things throughout the wine, a cool, bright flavour profile too, quite delicate, lemon-lime, Japanese pickled ginger, tart, green apple juice and some faint, cedar and a cooling tonic water edge to the wine. Crystalline texture, glassy and bright, a crunch to texture too that feels pleasing. It has all the right moves for a wine detailed by edifice of flint and winemaking approach. It should win a lot of friends in this en vogue style, done well.
