Ataraxia Chardonnay 2023

75cl bottle.

Vegan

A world class South African barrel-fermented Chardonnay from superstar winemaker Kevin Grant.

I have travelled quite a few miles over the years to see Kevin (mostly to London) and he is always ready with a smile and a funky shirt. His wines are without doubt one of the highlights about working in the wine industry. Visiting the Ataraxia Estate is up also up there with the greatest of my wine experiences. The wines are Modern and the whites are excellent.

A minimalist, non-interventionist winemaking approach was adopted by Kevin Grant when producing this exceptional wine. After leaving the Hamilton-Russell estate Kevin set up on his own in 2004, purchasing a 50ha site close to the ocean and high up in the Hemal-en-Aarde region. This Chardonnay is 100% barrel fermented and carefully matured in specially selected small French oak barriques sourced exclusively from Burgundian coopers. Occasional batonnage was employed throughout the 9 month maturation period. The result is a Chardonnay that is New World in provenance but Old World in stylistic leaning. A chiselled, focussed wine that effortlessly manages to be both subtle and intense.