- 98 points -

 A relaxed nose belies the seductive roll and swirl of a full and voluptuous fruit profile, and a cooler vintage brings a cohesive yet concentrated voice to a tightly-wound meld of flavours. A savoury edge allows minerality to shine, while vibrant energy that tremulously ripples along a lengthy acid spine will maintain the verve in this vintage for a long time.

- 98 points -

It seems a gross understatement to say that Tolpuddle has been in fine form as of late, but they have knocked it out the park again with this release from the cooler '23 vintage. The palest of straw in the glass, the aromas crisp and filigreed. Citrus, white peach and nectarine cut with glorious wisps of struck match and flinty complexity. Grilled hazelnuts, deftly-judged vanillin oak, lardo, white flowers, crushed riverstone, clotted cream and sea spray. The wine envelops the imbiber; flavours precise and pure with an umami-rich, mineral cadence, dreamy texture and daubs of spiced oatmeal, grilled peaches and flint. The finish is sustained, the only thing unresolved the need for another (larger?) bottle. An outstanding Australian chardonnay.

- 98 points -

I was shocked at the intensity of the 2021 Chardonnay when I first tasted it. How could a wine so young have this much flavor? It is polished, glassy and graceful. It unfurls in the mouth and soars long over the horizon. It's balanced and powerful, crouching at this early stage, but all the building blocks of greatness are here. A wine of extension, expansion and elegance—a formidable trio.

- 98 points -

This has power and complexity and the right grade of reductive flair, overlaid on fresh yellow grapefruit and peach with flint and wet chalk, as well as attractive oak in the background. The palate has mouthwatering white-peach and lemon flavors with a deep draw of acidity that drives the finish in really deep, precise and fresh. Lip-smacking resolve here. Elegance, poise and whip-cracking freshness.

- 97 points -

The filigree structure is a study in delicate balance between pure varietal character, site differentiation and winemaker vision. Lean and bony, its fruit is bound in a taut frame of citrus-tinged acidity, yet the finely drawn flavours show unusual intensity and persistence. Keep looking beyond the pastel sketch of white peach and lemon, and deep down there’s struck flint, a hint of seasoned oak, a lick of wet granite – nothing overt, nothing that doesn’t add to the sum of the parts.

- 97 points -

The colour is still a pale quartz-green, the freshness excellent; the most remarkable part of this wine is its combination of finesse, length and intensity of varietal fruit flavour, in turn based on the laser etching of Tasmanian acidity. The drink to date may prove conservative.

- 97 points -

The Tolpuddle Chardonnay is routinely a class act, polished and piercing in every vintage iteration, and somehow delivers a deeply satisfying, comforting flow of flavor atop the more intellectual framing that it is known for. Here, the 2022 Chardonnay leads with white peach and flowers, layers of green apple, saltbush, ocean spray, gently leafy herbs and tobacco to close. In the mouth, the tannins expand to fill the space, creating a capacious feeling—a cavern, almost. Suffice it to say, this is a wonderful wine, again. Gently grippy through the finish, it's totally composed. 13.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.

- 97 points -

Sophisticated and polished aromas of flint, stone fruit, lemon curd and beeswax. The palate is medium-bodied with a creamy texture that is cut through with a laser-like acidity, giving notes of grapefruit rind, shortbread, orange blossoms and chalk. Exceptional poise and balance with underlying tension coming from a cool vintage.

- 97 points -

I like the slate, flint and stone aromas to the sliced apples and white dried pineapple. Lemon curd. Some honeysuckle, too. Full-bodied, with creamy texture and extremely long finish. Complete and beautiful. So well crafted.

- 96 points -

Always a very good chardonnay. Often among the New World's best. This said, it is always a pungent, flinty reductive iteration, considerably different to the more generous norm in these parts. Medium-bodied and typically taut, reeling off truffle, leesy oatmeal and white peach notes across a tautly furled, almost gritty climax of praline and hazelnut accents. This will age exceptionally well.

- 96 points -

Where the cool 2012 vintage shows almond meal and oat at this 10-year interval, the nine-year-old 2013 Chardonnay hails from a warm vintage, and that has built a robustness into the wine. This is powerful and long, with no break in programming over the palate. It’s seriously good, seriously fresh and full. The acidity is saline and refreshing, and it's woven with invisible threads throughout each part of the wine. With incredible intensity and lingering fruit, it’s simply awesome. This has entered a new phase of drinking here, reaching an apogee moment in time. Sensational.

- 95 points -

Wonderful aromas of apple pie, straw and mineral. Hints of dried apple, too. Full body, bright acidity and an oyster-shell, apple and mineral aftertaste. So layered and intense but delicate and beautiful. 

- 95 points -

The 2023 Chardonnay is precise and firm, with salty fruit and a spool of tense acidity that spirals through the finish. It's very long and very good, although raw at this inchoate stage of its development. I love this wine each year. The saline thread of acidity really extends out through the finish, like casting a fishing rod over a still lake; the sound of the reel is akin to the extension of the acidity across the palate. The bouquet speaks so clearly of sage, salted cashews, green apple, white peach and pressed lavender. This is a beautiful wine, one that is tightly coiled at this stage. I'd recommend buying what you can but waiting another year or more to open the bottles, such is the potential here. 13.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.

- 95 points -

#53

In what has become an unmistakably Tolpuddle (and heavily Burgundy-influenced) style, this is a rich, intensively reductive Chardonnay that's set for the long haul. For now, there's a sulfuric potency, like a just-struck match combined with roasted cashews and buttered toast. Somewhere in the mix, a fruity note like pineapple rind or peach skin, emerges. The palate is similarly toast-driven, but it wears it well, that to its inherent power: textural weight, lifted acidity and depth of flavor. You could drink it now but it'd be a shame.

- 93 points -

Wonderfully vibrant and sleek, with mouthwatering intensity to the Meyer lemon, lime sherbet and toasted sesame seed notes, with accents of orange blossom and fresh lemon verbena that linger on the long, expressive and refreshing finish. 

17.5 Points

A dream. Always looked approachable and lovely. Fabulous tension on the nose. And a very broad, satisfying fruit that really fills in every space on the palate. Best yet!