Professional Ratings

• 94 Wine & Spirits

  Leeuwin’s Prelude Chardonnay sees 40 percent new French oak, in contrast to its Art Series line, aged entirely in new barrels. By turning down the intensity, winemaker Phil Hutchinson has created a gracious chardonnay that shows the Stevens Road vineyard in a gentle light. That gentleness extends to its texture, supple and silken, and to the pale scents of ginger and yellow flowers. The wine feels substantial, with intensity to its apple and baked-pear flavors—‘it vibrates on my palate,’ one taster said. All the elements of the wine are balanced, so it would probably age; the intention, however, is to present a wine to drink on release, and there’s little reason to resist its seductive beauty

• 92 Wine Enthusiast

  In this vintage of Prelude, the vineyards’ proximity to ocean couldn’t be more apparent. Sea spray, shells and all manner of beachfront smells are at the fore, backed by grapefruit, white spice and gunflint. The palate is salty and slippery. It’s a little austere, the acidity on the lean side and the oak a touch apparent, but pair this with a wide array of dishes, particularly seafood, and it should come alive

• 90 James Suckling

  Lots of ripe apple and pineapple character on the nose and palate. Full body, layered and rich. Tangy acidity. A juicy and fruity chardonnay.

• 90 Wine Spectator

  A laser beam of toast and spice are welcome warming touches to the precise core of peach and citrus flavors, set on a succulent frame, lingering on the finish.