Kalleske Florentine Chenin Blanc 2020 Tasting Notes from the winery

Florentine 2020 is pale-straw in colour with a green hue. The aromatics are buoyant with bustling characters of citrus tart, gooseberry, flowers, honeydew melon and fresh-cut pear. The graceful palate is lively and bursting with flavours of juicy apple, nectarine and lime.  Elegant throughout, the bright primary fruit is complimented with crunchy natural acidity.  A very lingering finish completes this fruit-driven wine of great purity.  Florentine can be enjoyed now but will cellar gracefully.

This single vineyard Chenin Blanc, sourced from mature vines on our Kalleske farm, is a vibrant fruit-driven wine.  These old vines are one of the few remaining Chenin blanc vineyards in the Barossa.  Grapes were harvested in the cool night and gently pressed for fermentation to provide a naturally varietal yet complex wine.  It gains its name from Caroline ‘Florentine’ Kalleske, the first daughter of Johann Georg Kalleske who migrated to Australia from Prussia in 1838. Florentine is a genuine hand crafted wine that’s been grown, vintaged and matured on our Kalleske estate at Greenock in the North-Western Barossa.

GROWING SEASON

Vintage 2020 has delivered wines of amazing quality.  However, quantity is very limited, with it being one of the lowest grape yields ever in the Barossa at around 50% of average.  Yields were dire due to a combination of early mild frost conditions, then a notably windy period (45% windier) around flowering leading to poor set (not many berries) followed by some hot days in November and an overall dry growing season (34% down).  Notably, quality is of the highest echelon with intense and balanced flavours.

VINEYARD

Florentine is from a single vineyard of Chenin Blanc on the Kalleske property that was planted in 1988.  The vines are low yielding and soil is shallow sand with clay subsoil.

WINEMAKING

The grapes were harvested in the cool of the night on February 27th.  They were then pressed and the juice was briefly settled prior to racking to fermentation.  The juice was cooly fermented in tank for seventeen days.  The wine was bottled immediately after primary fermentation whilst young and fresh to retain utmost vibrancy.

(SKU: KA_CBl_20)