Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A chardonnay that shows tension and depth. Lively and linear. Full body. Flavorful finish. Drink now. Screw cap.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Croft Chardonnay is redolent of ripe peaches, pink grapefruit and honeydew melon with hints of allspice and lightly browned toast. Medium-bodied with a satiny texture, the palate provides a great intensity of stone fruit and savory flavors, finishing with plenty of energy.
Rating: 91+ -
Wine Enthusiast
In true Henschke style, this Adelaide Hills Chardonnay is a sleek and polished wine with plenty of character. Stone fruits, cream, flint, nuts, white pepper and a copper penny tang make up the nose, while the palate tingles with lifted acidity and a slippery finish. Bright peachy fruit and oak spice linger long after the first sip has been swallowed. Drink now–2027.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
A narrow band of hills and valleys east of the city of Adelaide, the Adelaide Hills region is a diverse landscape featuring a variety of microclimates. In general it is moderate with high-altitude areas cooler and wetter compared to its warmer, lower areas.
Piccadilly Valley, the part of Adelaide Hills closest to the city, was first staked out by a grower named Brian Croser, in the 1970s for a cool spot to grow Chardonnay, then uncommon in Australia. Today a good amount of the Chardonnay goes to winemakers outside of the region.
Producers here experiment with other cool-climate loving aromatic varieties like Pinot Gris, Viognier and Riesling. Charming sparkling wine is also possible. On its north side, lower, west-facing slopes make full-bodied Shiraz.