Fresh, inviting and light, with lively pear and floral aromas and flavors, finishing with a silky texture. Drink now through 2016. 1,000 cases made.??–HS??Region: Australia / Western Australia / Frankland River Select to Add

Barrel fermented and aged for 9-10 months with little or no malo-lactic, the 2011 Isolation Ridge Chardonnay gives a very good intensity of ripe nectarine, apricot and toast aromas over roasted almonds, cedar and butterscotch. Light to medium-bodied, it has a great concentration of stone fruit and toast flavors with lively acid and a nice silkiness to the texture, finishing long. Though it makes for a fresh, fruit glass now, it should open and evolve, cellaring to 2016+. Importer: John Larchet, The Australian Premium Wine Collection; www.tapwc.com

From fruit off a single certified organic vineyard and naturally fermented in French oak, 25% new and aged in oak for 9 months, the 2010 Isolation Ridge Vineyard Chardonnay is very youthful and still a little oak-forward on the nose over notes of warm apple, guava and apricots plus hints of toast, meal and shaved almonds. Medium bodied on the palate, the ripe, concentrated peaches and tropical fruit flavors are nicely matched by judicious use of oak and offset by crisp acidity. The finish is long and creamy. Give this one another year in bottle and drink it 2012 to 2017+. Importer: John Larchet, The Australian Premium Wine Collection; www.tapwc.com

The 2008 Isolation Ridge Vineyard Chardonnay is from the single vineyard. It was 100% barrel fermented, 10-20% new wood, using indigenous yeast with a very small proportion going through malo-lactic and seeing some batonnage. With intense aromas of pineapple pastry, honeydew, apricots, oatmeal and touches of toast and butterscotch, it has medium to high racy acid, a medium body and lovely silky texture. “We planted Riesling when we planted our vineyard in 1988,” Judy Cullam of Frankland Estate explained when we met. “There’s a big Riesling vineyard next to us that Houghton’s had been leasing, so we knew the variety would do well. Our first vintage was the 1991. In the beginning when we would show the wine people would say to us, ‘Oh no, come back with a Chardonnay’.” Fortunately that attitude is changing and many wine cognoscenti now know that the Frankland region is begetting some world class Rieslings. Since 2001 Frankland Estate has moved from producing a regional blend to making three very impressive single vineyard Rieslings: Isolation Ridge, Cooladerra Ridge and Poison Hill.Importer: John Larchet, The Australian Premium Wine Collection; www.tapwc.com