Lightfoot Wines Myrtle Point Vineyard Chardonnay 2024

Winemaking Notes
The Lightfoot Wines Myrtle Point Vineyard Chardonnay 2024 is crafted exclusively from fruit grown at the Myrtle Point Vineyard in the coastal Gippsland Lakes District, Victoria, a unique site located high on a limestone bluff above the Mitchell River. The vineyard's soil structure—classic Terra Rossa over limestone—is highly unusual in Gippsland and contributes distinctive saline minerality to the wine. Located between the Great Dividing Range and Bass Strait, the Gippsland Lakes District enjoys a cool, semi-maritime climate that produces fruit of exceptional quality and character. The grapes were picked and pressed, with the juice run directly to barrel for fermentation. A majority of large-format French oak puncheons (500L) were used, along with some hogsheads (300L), of which approximately 15% were new barrels. Fermentation was carried out in these barrels until completion, after which the lees were stirred periodically over the following weeks to build texture and complexity. The wine was then left in barrel for nine months until it was blended, stabilised and filtered prior to bottling. This careful barrel fermentation and extended lees contact has resulted in a layered and textural wine with notes of lemon sorbet, white peach and fresh almonds, complemented by a gentle, nutty barrel ferment character that adds depth whilst maintaining the wine's bright, balanced nature.

Vintage Conditions
The 2024 vintage at Myrtle Point Vineyard began with a wetter than average spring punctuated with beautiful warm sunny days, creating ideal conditions for the vines to emerge from dormancy. The vines were a little later than normal waking from their dormant period, which was welcomed as it lessened frost risk—a crucial consideration for this cool-climate site. The plentiful rain and warm conditions quickly saw the growth catch up to a normal year, and fortunately conditions over flowering allowed a fairly consistent crop to set. The vineyard team worked diligently throughout the season, with shoot thinning, trimming and regular trellis work keeping the canopy open and minimising disease pressure whilst supporting the developing bunches. Regular feeding with fish emulsion, seaweed and dynamic lifter saw the vines growing strongly and the soil around the vines alive with biota, contributing to the overall health and quality of the fruit. As the new year rolled around, the rain eased and the sun shone at just the right time to dry out the vineyard and focus energy on ripening grapes. What had been a slow start quickly caught up and even overtook normal vintage milestones, meaning that picking started significantly earlier than normal, with Chardonnay picked in February instead of the usual March dates. The quality of the 2024 fruit was excellent, all helped by what could only be described as a pretty dream run by viticulture standards.