"The best Chardonnay yet from this address. Superlative." - The Wine Companion, 95 points

It takes about 43 facial muscles to produce a smile and, no, I'm not going to go all 'bumper sticker' philosopher and say it takes more muscles to frown. I only mentioned it, because a smile seems so simple, yet it involves a lot of moving parts and I often think the same about a glass of wine as it sits there, all pale and monochromatic.

If this wine were to visually reflect all the hard work that went into its creation, it should look like the ceiling of the Sistine chapel, but it just looks like the water that Michelangelo dipped his yellow brush in. It was sourced from the 'Bowyer Ridge' vineyard in the Adelaide Hills, where the fruit was hand-picked, whole-bunch pressed and the free-run juice was racked off and fermented with wild yeasts in French oak barrels (18% new), the majority of which were 500 litre puncheons, as well as hogsheads and demi-muids. It was left on its lees in barrel for partial malolactic fermentation with regular battonage to build texture. Simple really.

The name 'Paralaian' comes from ancient Greece and refers to a person or people who live by the sea and that is where you will find winemakers, Charlie Seppelt and Skye Salter. Their 'Bowyer Ridge' 2022 is bristling with juicy acids as well as salty minerals, a classic coastal Chardonnay, whose flavours reflect the work that went into it, with intense yellow citrus, a warm biscuit and almond paste character (from the batonnage) and toasty, nutty notes (from the oak), like a sort of Chablis-Assyrtiko-Meursault mash-up with fabulous, mouth-watering acidity that lights up the palate like the flippers on a pinball machine. I'd be amazed if it didn't stimulate at least 43 of your facial muscles. 13.5% alc. Drink now-2036.

Press review:

The Wine Companion: "This is a thrilling mid-weighted Chardonnay with obvious fruit sacrificed for textural intrigue derived from partial malolactic fermentation, schist melded with sand, juicy acidity and savvy lees handling. The complexity that this engenders is winning. Think almond meal, corn kernel, citrus zest and allusions of glazed quince and toasted hazelnut barrelling long. The oak is beautifully embedded and while I've made this sound powerful, it has a latent, sophisticated and subdued energy that builds across the glass. The best Chardonnay yet from this address. Superlative." 95 points

The Wine Advocate: "The 2022 Chardonnay is from the Bowyer Ridge Vineyard and is a gently nutty, super salty, spicy, acidic little thing. It has a quenching array of white and yellow peach and nectarine, suggestions of curry leaf and brine and layers upon layers of very fine, chalky phenolics. I like it; it's elegant and pert. Drink now-2037." 94 points