The Villages range of Pinot Noir and Chardonnays was first added to the Mac Forbes stable of fine, detailed wines with the 2019 vintage. It bridges the gap between the regional Yarra Valley wines and his Single Vineyard expressions, and wonderfully highlights the sub-regional differences of the Yarra.
This is in the flinty, crunchy iteration of the Mac Forbes Chardonnay supermarket. A real minerally feel here, with citrus and grapefruit being the dominant fruit characters. It's a pithy, dramatic wine that will reward some cellaring.
De-stemmed and crushed before pressing, matured for nine months in old oak. East facing within a smaller valley that runs from Yarra Junction to Poweltown in the south, featuring grey loam soils with underlying silt. Cooler winds roll off the Yarra River, with mountains directly to the north and south-west providing protection from the hot afternoon sun in summer. Typically later ripening, thicker skins and higher acids are reflected in elegant structure with clean lines and powerful drive.
From a single site. A few hours skin contact before fermentation and maturation in mainly seasoned barriques. It's a coin toss between this and the Woori Yallock as my pick of the Village series wines in 2022. Complex with aromas of tangerines, just-ripened orchard fruits, pink grapefruit and a little oyster shell. Tightly wound with great acidity. Balanced and mouthcoating, finishing pithy and long. It's more than approachable now, but those with a few tucked away in the cellar in three to four years should be well rewarded.