Rare chance to taste chardonnay vintages

Villa Maria and Esk Valley winemakers Nick Picone and Gordon Russell.

I was an ABC, but after a visit to Hawke's Bay's Villa Maria Gimblett Gravels to sample Chardonnay Our Way I'm converted.

No longer will I ever say "Anything But Chardonnay" (ABC) when these beauties are available.

Next weekend you too can take up this rare opportunity to taste and buy sold out vintages of chardonnay and also taste some not yet released wines.

There will be 15 wines available to taste along with some delicious canapes and grazing boards.

Isobella, the assistant brand manager at Villa Maria, took me through a tasting. We started with Villa Maria Hawke's Bay Reserve 2017 Chardonnay.

It was quite oaky on the nose, well rounded, buttery and delicious.

Isobella said a good chardonnay shouldn't be too oaky or too buttery. "It needs to be well structured."

There will be delicious grazing boards available.

The next we tried was the sold out Esk Valley Winemakers Reserve Chardonnay 2018.

This is made with fruit from Bay View on land that was under water before the 1932 earthquake.

"To this day you can still find shells and sea creatures in the soil. You can actually smell the minerals in it. The grapes are all hand picked and the season was beautiful and dry which all helps with the end product."

This was my favourite of the three. It was so smooth and just absolutely delightful. None of this tasting went into the spital.

The final tasting was Villa Maria Single Vineyard Keltern Chardonnay 2019.

"Look for the lemon and honey notes in this and also the soft oakiness," Isobella said.

She was spot on.

Here's your chance to try a five year vertical of the renowned Villa Maria Single Vineyard Keltern Chardonnay including sold out vintages, current vintage 2019 and not yet released 2020.

"Chardonnay cellars well. It's best five to 10 years after bottling when the fruit flavour reduces down and develops into aged wine and you can taste all the complexity — that's what we want.

"Chardonnay is popular in New Zealand. Villa Maria makes its own style. We don't copy any French or American styles."

Isobella said people's pallets were getting more sophisticated.

"The more you try, the more sophisticated your tasting gets," she said.

Chardonnay Our Way is on at Villa Maria (previously Te Awa Winery) next Saturday, May 29 from 1pm to 5pm.

Villa Maria and Esk Valley winemakers Nick Picone and Gordon Russell will be teaming up alongside company viticulturist and regional viticulturist Ollie Powrie and Paul Robinson to showcase these amazing wines and offer bespoke tasting opportunities.

Master of Wine Matthew Deller will be assisting in showcasing these beautiful chardonnays in a unique celebration of Hawke's Bay chardonnays.

Wines include:
■ A five year vertical of the renowned Villa Maria Single Vineyard Keltern Chardonnay (including sold out vintages of 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2018, current vintage 2019 and not yet released 2020)
■ Villa Maria Hawkes Bay Chardonnay 2017, 2018, 2019 and additional vintages
■ Sold out Esk Valley Winemakers Reserve Chardonnay 2018 and current vintage 2019 alongside our new Artisanal Chardonnay and Flint Chardonnay
Tickets are $49 and includes include a selection of local seasonal canapes and grazing boards created to pair with the wine.
■ For tickets go to villamariawines.com/winery/wine-club/chardonnay-our-way.