Wine Review | Merekara Les Sélectionnés Chenin Blanc | 2023

Family Owned | Boutique Wines | Single Vineyard

Jaco and Sandra create the best environment for their Chenin to ripen. By hand they riddle the golden Chenin bunches on the North facing side of the vines so that they can evenly ripen.  The grapes are hand-picked, cold settled, foot stomped followed by a whole bunch press and natural fermentation which takes place in barrel and puncheon.  The wine remains in those barrels for a malolactic fermentation with a total maturation of 10 months.

This Chenin is unfiltered and leans towards a Vouvray style.  Pale to lemon straw in colour with a faint haze. Fresh fragrant nose with aromas of ripe apples, quince and a nutty almond note. On the palate green apple, honey, ginger, lemon, spice with a mineral finish. Good acidic balance, crisp and dry.  This wine is a rich expression of what Chenin can be in New Zealand.

This Chenin Blanc will go well with an Amuse-bouche of fermented cashew cheese on kale chips topped with pickled tuna and mustard seeds.