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2024 Congruous Chenin Blanc Semillon

$32.00

The word Congruous means ‘marked or enhanced by harmonious agreement among constituent elements; exhibiting harmony of parts; appropriate or fitting’.  That’s a bit of a mouthful, and that’s exactly what this wine is meant to be (pun intended!).  We have taken the pressings from our Chenin Blanc (36 y.o. vines) and Semillon (44 y.o. vines) and enhanced them with appropriate winemaking elements to make a wine that exhibits harmony among its parts.  Pressings are naturally darker, golden in colour and are lightly phenolic (textural grip) as the juice has spent more time in contact with skins.  These cold juice pressings are then held cold for 8 days and mixed (stabulation), extracting valuable compounds from the juice lees, providing additional aroma and mouthfeel.  Wild yeast then ferment the juice, each yeast genera adding their own nuances to the wine.

Fermentation and maturation in 50 per cent new Hungarian oak imparts rich, sweet oak flavours, as well as a slight tannin edge.  The wine underwent full malolactic fermentation, further softening it, adding a creamy plushness.  Lees stirring throughout the 8-month maturation incorporated compounds from the self-destructing yeast cells adding another layer of textural weight, body and mouthfeel.   The intent of Congruous was to make a flavoursome, textural white wine and according to Mike Bennie of WBM, that brief was achieved with him declaring it “… a textural white wine of distinguished character (and drinkability, of course).  Nails it.  Compelling.”

143 in stock

Colour:
2024 Congruous shines with a light golden-straw hue.

Aroma:
Its aroma is vibrant and inviting, offering a bouquet of ripe peaches, honeydew melon, and pear, layered with roasted nuts, custard tart, and a delicate floral perfume.

Palate:
On the palate, it is medium-bodied, featuring a harmonious blend of white stone fruits and rich pome fruits.  The oak influence is refined and well-integrated, contributing richness, roundness, and subtle notes of nuts, caramel, and a whisper of toast.  A soft, creamy, buttery texture adds to the wine’s plush mouthfeel.  Light grape skin phenolics and gentle new oak barrel tannins introduce a touch of astringency, balancing the wine’s overall opulence.  The finish is long and lingering.  Congruous 2024 is a flavourful, textural white wine that beautifully showcases the finesse of Barossa pressings, thoughtfully crafted with pertinent winemaking technique.

Recommended Drinking:
Enjoyed now or over the next five to ten years.               

Both the Chenin Blanc and Semillon grapes were harvested on March 4th.  Each lot was destemmed, crushed, and pressed.  The free-run juice was utilised for other wines, whilst the pressings each went to a separate tank for cold stabulation.  Stabulation involved keeping the whole juice on juice bottoms/lees for 8 days at a cold temperature and daily mixing this juice to extract the good compounds contributing to aroma and mouthfeel.  The juice then underwent wild yeast fermentation after which half was filled to new Hungarian oak and the balance to seasoned oak and a stainless tank.  The entire wine went through natural malolactic fermentation and barrel lees stirring was employed adding further texture.  After 8 months of maturation the wine was blended and bottled

Vintage 2024 was excellent.  Winter and Spring were drier and slightly warmer than average leading to earlier budburst, flowering and veraison. Summer welcomed refreshing rainfall, average temperatures, with no extreme heat, ensuring the vines flourished with their very balanced crop load and apt canopy leading to steady ripening.  Autumn began warm and finished mildly, continuing the consistent ripening of grapes until harvest was finished in mid-Autumn.  The yields are overall average, and the quality is superb. 

Congruous is from a Chenin Blanc (51%) vineyard and Semillon (49%) vineyard, planted on the Kalleske property at Moppa in 1988 and 1980 respectively.  The vines are low yielding, and soil is shallow sand with clay subsoil.

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