ARTUS CHARDONNAY
Artus is an artistic translation of our local Gin Gin clone into wine. It is a provocative, complex and textural wine exuding the seductive spirit of “old world” Chardonnay.
2023
96pts Gold, International Wine & Spirits Coompetition - Margaret River "Vibrant aromas of peach and apricot, complemented by caramelized pineapple and cool flint. On the palate, fresh grapefruit and lemon curd intertwine with the creamy texture, revealing delicious hints of toasty vanilla and smooth marzipan."
96pts Halliday Wine Companion "While it comes out as a bit of a powerhouse flavour-wise and in structure, this is backed up by fine acidity, driving this long. It also keeps the substantional flavours of savoury oak, creamed-honey lees and grapefuirt in check. Some flinty, funky suohpides add an extra dimensions of complexity as it continues to build on the palate." Jane Faulkner.
96pts Ray Jordan "Plenty happening in this funky and wild expression of Chardonnay. On the nose, an intense combination of butterscotch, roasted cashew and lemon curd with vanilla bean lift revel. The palate is layered with a complete maze and intricate weave of flavours reflecting the initial aromas. And then a minerally finish completes a very good wine.”
95pts Gary Walsh, Winefront “This is all Gin Gin clone from Karridale. Malo and 40% new oak. Rich lime, peach, a fair clip of toasty spicy oak and struck match, salted pistachio and mint. It’s a powerful wine, lots of flavour and presence, a rich gloss to it, though it’s cut by bright citrus acidity, cloves and plenty of grip giving it a tactile intensity, nutty and tangy on a finish of excellent length. It’s Margaret River Chardonnay in full flight. Very good. Impressive wine.”
96pts Shanteh Wale, Winepilot “To many Chardonnay lovers, the aroma of this wine will have you swooning. Sliced pineapple, peach cheeks and the classiest of new oak wafts from the galss. Mace, vanilla bean and buttered sourdough toast. acidity increases over long moments and provides a zingy note to the lucsious creamy mounthfeel of cashew, butter and lemon curd. Flavour last for days and it's near impossible not to be searching for your glass for the next sip. Beguiling and a real work of beauty. Drink with bubbling macaroni and cheese. You can thank me later."
2022
Gold, 2024 Decanter World Wine Awards, London "Strident steely citrus and taut mineral notes preside over refined oak. Focused and finessed with a creamy texture and a conterbalancing bristle of tense acidity."
97 pts Ray Jordan "Savoury butterscotch and creme brulee swirl through an engaging palate defined by a keen acid and a little grapefruit to close. Just a beautiful wine."
96 pts Dr Angus Hughson "...nectarine and mango aromas with a strong line of toasty oak, accented by chalky complexity. Long and sleek..."
95pts Huon Hooke "A touch of funk here, some smoky sulfides and toasty barrel derived character allied with nougat honey and toasted nuts. A wine of refinement and restraint as well as good depth of flavour, the refreshing acidity towing the flavour long through an extended finish."
95pts James Suckling "Deeply scented and complex aromas of lemon confit, shortbread, gunsmoke and ocean spray. The textural, medium-bodied palate has focused acidity, giving notes of lime curd, butterscotch, graphite and cheese rind. Generous with an underlying tension. Drink or hold."
2021
96 pts James Halliday "A wine from the big end of town, built on a scaffold of French oak barrel fermentation and stiletto acidity. Grapefruit and nectarine fill in the masonry. It is layered and balanced."
96 pts Ray Jordan "Rich butterscotch aromas with ripe stone fruit adds so much to the nose and the palate. It's a highly textured wine with a dry savoury minerality providing a beautiful finish. A little gunsmoke brings a subtle new dimension."
95pts The Real Review "A very complex and complete wine that is drinking beautifully."
96 pts Cassandra Charlick "This is a wine that lets you know when it’s arrived at the doorstep... The fruit is evenly weighted across the palate and amongst all of that oak it has a delicacy to it, purity and sweetness of character... Every sip leaves you aching for more."
96+ Parker pts, Wine Advocate "It is sleek, glassy and svelte, defined by cool acid and a mineral spool of phenolic tension. So, this 2021 Artus Chardonnay is exactly that. It is nuanced and detailed, mineral and rocky, shaped as it is by malolactic fermentation and rich, toasty oak...I love this wine." Erin Larkin
2020
97 James Halliday “Cloudy juice ex whole bunch pre ferment, mlf, and the gingin clone all help create a wine of stellar complexity and length...... drink to 2029.”
97 Annette Lacey MW, WinePilot
95 Walsh “Grand style of Margaret River Chardonnay on show here.”
2019
97 James Halliday, Top 100 “Whole-bunch pressed, wild-yeast fermented in new (40%) and used French oak. The bouquet is complex with funky (good) aromas, the palate briefly nodding to the bouquet before moving on to a pure stream of fresh citrus and white peach. The balance and aftertaste are special.”
95 Walsh “The smooth operator in the Naturaliste Chardonnay range .... Sophisticated and seductive. Beautiful.”2018
97 James Halliday, 96 & Gold International Wine Challenge London,
95 Walsh “Art for art’s sake. Chardy for God’s sake. Pear, white nectarine, a minor amount of struck match, almond meal, fine ginger and clove spice oak. It’s fresh and bright, some grapefruit zing, but mainly pears studded with spice, tasteful application of savoury toasty oak, slight sizzled butter and nuts, fine powdery texture, cool, long .." , 92 Robert Parker Wine Advocate 92 Suckling 92 Decanter2017
98 Platinum Decanter World Wine Awards “Big vanilla and toasty brioche nose. High toast, new oak on the palate with a great depth of ripe tropical fruit flavour, plus a rich vein of pineapple acidity that carries the youthful fruit. Everything is in place for this to evolve gracefully.”
96 James Halliday Blue Gold Sydney International 20192016
97 James Halliday “It’s exceptionally fresh and pure, white peach and nectarine at its core. Roasted cashew and citrussy acidity dance around the core, creating a very long and crisp finish.”
97 Gold International Wine Challenge Trophy Best WA Chardonnay 96 Campbell Mattinson Wine Front2015
96 James Halliday “Bruce Dukes at his best, conjuring up the complexity of a top French white burgundy..”
93 James Suckling 91 International Wine Challenge 90 Wine Spectator 18.5+/20 Matthew Jukes2014
96 James Halliday “has an entrancing lightness of touch, not commonly encountered in the normal profundity of Margaret River Chardonnay.”
91 Robert Parker Wine Advocate2013
Trophy London International Wine Challenge, 95 Hooke, 96 Jordan “sustained and powerful, with plenty of cellaring ahead”
94 Walsh, Top 100 UK Australia Wines Mathew Jukes