Allegiance Wines The Matron Tumbarumba Chardonnay 2023
$30, 12.5% alcohol, screwcap, Tumbarumba.
This is a taut, tart, racy chardonnay with grapefruit, citrus, nectarine and nashi pears characters running the length of the palate. There’s a flash of cashew-like oak in the mix as well but it’s in modest measure; fruit does most of the talking here. Another year in bottle and this should be tip top ready to drink. 90 points.
Campbell Mattinson has been an independent journalist, wine critic and photographer for forty years. He founded The Winefront, is a former chief editor of the Halliday Wine Companion (and former editor of Halliday magazine), and is the only Australian to have won the Australian Wine Communicator of the Year Award more than once. He is 100% independent, and tastes between 5,000 and 10,000 wines each year, blind and in comparative brackets as often as is practicable.
Mattinson is also the founder of the Mattinson Photography business.
