2023 Rosenthal The Marker Chardonnay

Brilliant medium straw. Lifted bouquet of nectarines and white peach with an underlay of toasty spice and nuts. The palate has complexity and richness from barrel ferment characters while cashews and peach notes swirl together to give a long flavoursome finish.

The Chardonnay grapes were harvested in the cool of the night and put straight into the press with
free-run and pressing juice separated. Both portions were barrel fermented in French oak barriques
(30% new and 70% two and three year old) and lees stirred for 5 months to promote increased
mouthfeel and richness. Fifteen percent of the barrels were allowed to wild ferment while the
remaining barrels inoculated with a selected yeast strain. The wine spent eight months of maturation
in barrel before the barrels were blended and the wine prepped for bottling in early January 2024.

The 2023 vintage was characterized by a wet winter followed by a hot start to summer and then a
cool change in late February that slowed the grape ripening leading to one of the longest harvests
on record. The slowing down of ripening allowed lots of flavour to accumulate with a great balance of
acidity. This has resulted in a bigger, richer style of Chardonnay with great aging potential.