Tower Estate Bowyer Ridge Chardonnay 2010 (Adelaide Hills, SA)
13%, Screwcap, $38
Source: Sample
www.towerestatewines.com.au

Tower Estate Bowyer Ridge Chardonnay

It’s going to be very interesting seeing what direction the Tower Estate wines take in the future, with all of the winemaking to be done under contract by First Creek/Monarch (instead of in-house). I can’t imagine it changing the style too much (particularly given how smart other wines from the First Creek stable are) but again time will tell.

Anyway, this is a pretty solid wine. A little too engineered perhaps but still with plenty to like. It all kicks off with a serious, ‘check out my oak’ nose cast full and big. The richly textured palate has milky
leesy notes, downplayed sulphide and an evenness to it that’s
immediately appealing. I really like that milky richness actually,
supported by good, even acidity.
Slightly intrusive oak is all that really mars proceedings, a flash of wood tannins on the finish.

It’s actually a quite traditionally built Chardonnay but with a modern spin to it. I think it’s smart – if a bit overt – though my Riesling loving Mum thought it the ‘sort of Chardonnay that turned me off Chardonnay’… 17.5/91+