Oraterra Oraterra Chardonnay 2024

The 2024 season was a contrast to 2023, coming with a sting – or in this case, a grand finale – at the end. It was a splendid season, and the general feeling is that 2024 will be remembered alongside 2013, 2001 and 1998 as an outstanding year.

We are so impressed with this wine. It was a remarkable vintage for ripening and acid retention; to be honest, from the moment we picked it, we had a good feeling about the potential of this Chardonnay. It was never going to disappoint. Fruit dominance is seen in kumquat, cut meadow flowers, buttercups and chalk. None, perhaps, is typical for Chardonnay, but so characteristic of ours. The wine moves steeply and swiftly over the palate like a river, with amazing textures and shapes. The acid is a solid levee, guiding the wine and giving it direction. However, its full-bodied nature wants to spill over the sides, filling the mouth from front to back and forward again like a wave, full of energy.

Hand-harvested fruit was pressed the following day, chilled. After a light settling, the juice was racked into foudres (1000 litres wooden casks) for a spontaneous ferment. Spring malolactic fermentation started naturally in October/November and finished in early 2025. The wine remained in these foudres, on lees, for 18 months. It was then transferred to tank and bottled without fining or filtration in December 2025.