2025 Fearon Chardonnay

Tasting Notes

Our second year working with Chardonnay fruit from the prestigious Talisman vineyard, we feel this sophomore effort builds upon our house style and beautifully reflects the exceptional growing season of 2025. This wine displays all the hallmarks and pedigree of classic Gingin clone Chardonnay; a voluminous and powerful fruit core, crystalline acidity and integration of subtle French oak character. Ripe citrus fruit of yellow grapefruit and lime curd lead into more savoury notes of struck flint, lanolin and a hint of toasted brioche. Floral notes of mandarin blossom, wattle flower and vanilla bean emerge with time in glass. The palate is unapologetically rich, with the primary citrus core building and enveloping. The pithy and textural Meyer-lemon acidity builds to a long and pleasantly bitter finish. Judicious use of subtle French oak fleshes out and builds supporting palate weight, completing a full-bodied but precisely structured wine of eminence and longevity. Decanting while young and serve with only a slight chill (~12°C), best paired with wood-fired Porchetta, or Marron tails with garlic butter.

Winemaking

Fruit was hand harvested on the morning of 26^rd February 2025, then transported to the winery and chilled overnight.  The following day the fruit was destemmed into a basket press, then gently pressed over several hours. The free-run juice was transferred directly to a new French oak puncheon and seasoned French oak barrique. Harder pressing juice was settled overnight then transferred to another seasoned French oak barrique. Wild fermentation was allowed to proceed, with primary fermentation completed around 23 days later. The barrels were then topped, moved into a cool-room and stirred periodically for several weeks. No malolactic fermentation was allowed to proceed, with sulphur being added 14 weeks post-fermentation. The wine spent a further 10 months maturing in oak, during which time it was stirred and topped periodically. In December, the wine was racked out of oak and blended into tank with full solids and allowed to age on fine lees for an additional six months. After this, the wine was racked and bottled in May 2026, with no fining or filtration. As a result, a fine sediment may remain in bottle.

This wine will begin to show its true potential in 3-5 years and will continue to age gracefully for 10 years or more. Best decanted when young.

Vineyard

The fruit was sourced from 28-year-old Gingin clone vines in the Talisman vineyard, located in the Ferguson Valley sub-region of Geographe. The Talisman vineyard is located near the headwaters of the Ferguson catchment, planted across parallel broad valleys and intervening ridgelines, utilising all available aspects and slopes. The Chardonnay is planted towards the bottom of one of these valleys, on a moderate slope with a westerly aspect. The region’s underlying granite bedrock is visible via extruding boulders towards the top of the block. Being the most inland vineyard in the Ferguson Valley sub-region, the micro-climate has a continental influence, consequently experiencing one of the longest growing seasons in the Geographe wine region. Combined with the deep and well drained dark loamy soils, the Talisman vineyard is recognised as one of the premier sites in Geographe, the Chardonnay in particular is recognised for consistent quality and distinction.

Season

After the extraordinarily hot, dry and compressed harvest of 2024, 2025 was a welcome return to a more balanced and rhythmic, classic southwest WA growing season. The winter of 2024 saw slightly above average temperatures, and above average rainfall that started later but persisted well into spring. Mild and settled conditions around budburst allowed balanced and even early shoot growth progressively hasten as temperatures warmed into October. Spring into early summer saw a perfect rhythm of clear sunny days interspersed with overcast and rainy conditions. Flowering occurred during generally settled weather, resulting in even berry set and good crop levels. A massive rain event towards the end of November saw over 100mm of rain fall in the Ferguson Valley district in less than 24 hours, stimulating strong secondary growth in vines that necessitated additional canopy management. Summer was generally warm with few temperature extremes. A mild heatwave preceded the onset of harvest in second week of February, with white varieties being harvested in quick succession. March saw milder temperatures and cool nights, and with the excellent residual soil moisture allowed perfect conditions for a long gradual ripening of red varieties. The last of the reds were harvested at the start of April. All in all, 2025 will go down as one of the finest vintages in Geographe’s viticultural history, with the wines destined to age gracefully for many years.