Santa Rita, Medalla Real, Gran Reserva - Chardonnay

• Vintage: 2018
• Origin: Viña Santa Rita - Valle de Limarí, Chile
• Taste guide: Dry, tropical fruit flavours with hints of citrus, toasty notes, buttery, oaked
• 75cl - 13.5% - natural cork closure
• Estate grown and bottled
• Food Match: Fish dishes particularly tuna or salmon, salads also fine.

The Santa Rita winery was founded in 1880 by Domingo Fernandez in the same area of Alto Jahuel where its main facilities stand today. From the end of the nineteenth century to mid-1970s, the winery developed under the ownership of the García Huidobro family. Then in 1980, the Claro group acquired the Santa Rita winery property and following this ownership change great technological advances and winemaking techniques were introduced to wine production.

In the early 1990s Santa Rita completed the acquisition and planting of more than 1,000 hectares in the most important Chilean wine producing valleys, including the world-renowned Limarí Valley, where the grapes for this wine were grown.

The LimarÍ Valley is the northernmost Chilean wine region, whose cool climate is strongly influenced by the proximity of the Pacific Ocean, the low-lying coastal mountains, and the early morning fog.

Select grapes were harvested at optimum ripeness in the cool of the evenings and transferred to the winery in refrigerated trucks to retain freshness. Once there 100% of the fruit was carefully sorted to ensure only top quality grapes were used. Vinification commenced in stainless steel vats using special yeasts, with the must later transferred to oak vats to finish fermentation. The final wine was then aged in French oak barrels for 7 months.

This greenish-yellow wine combines the aromas of tropical fruits and citrus with dried fruits and hazelnuts. The palate shows delicious fruit flavours of citrus, pineapple and white peaches enhance by pleasing acidity and a touch of sweetness. The oaking adds buttery and vanilLa tones This is an outstanding Chardonnay; complex and beautifully balanced all the way to its elegant, lingering finish.

Awarded the following medals:

BRONZE - Decanter World Wine Awards 2019
SILVER - International Wine Challenge 2019

Note this is an estate wine from the renowned Limari Valley, offered at a price you would normally pay for a basic Central Valley Chardonnay.

Sells for prices up to £14.99 in other internet wine merchants - BinEndWines' price is £10.80 a bottle