2018 Vasse Felix Chardonnay Filius

Community Tasting Notes (17) Avg Score: 88.4 points

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  10/6/2023 - VlgJeff wrote: 87 Points

  PnP, chilled. I'm hit with minerality and some orchard fruit (pear, yellow apple) on the nose. The medium bodied palate showed the same minerality along with lemon citrus, pear, yellow and green apple and just a touch of oak. Overall, interesting but a bit uninspiring.

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  11/7/2022 - forceberry wrote: 84 Points

  Following a cooler and somewhat rainy growing season, the fruit was harvested after a spell of warm, dry temperatures in early February 2018. Fermented spontaneously in French oak barrels, all batches underwent natural MLF. Aged for 8 months in French oak barrels (20,5% new, 79,5% used oak). Bottled in early 2019. 13% alcohol, 1,6 g/l residual sugar, 7,1 g/l acidity and pH 3,22.
  
  Pale yellow-green color. The nose feels a bit understated with light aromas of ripe citrus fruits and sweet white peach, some fresh apple tones, a little bit of skunky reduction and a faint woody hint of oak spice. The wine is ripe, broad and clean on the palate with a moderately full body and dry flavors of lemony citrus fruits and steely minerality, some apple peel bitterness, a little bit of crunchy white currant, light mineral notes of wet rocks and a hint of spicy wood. Although the wine is pretty high in acidity, it feels the emphasis is still on the quite mineral and at times rather bitter notes and the overall feel is somewhat low-key and mild, lacking the intensity and fruit freshness high acidity usually brings. The finish is lively, fresh and quite long with flavors of sharp Granny Smith apple, some mineral notes of wet rocks, a little bit of lemony citrus fruit, light crunchy notes of white currants and a hint of chalky bitterness.
  
  Although the wine is enjoyably clean, fresh and mineral in style, somehow the overall impression is rather understated and low-key, making it come across as a rather mild and anonymous effort among a dozen Margaret River Chardonnays. There's nothing wrong with this wine, it's somehow just very anonymous and uninspiring an effort amidst all the better and more interesting wines. I guess on its own this could be thoroughly enjoyable, but now the manages to leave only a rather lukewarm impression. Perhaps some additional aging might make it into something more interesting? In our Western Australia tasting of 12 Chardonnays the wine gained a total of 1 point, making it finish on the shared 5th place. Feels a bit expensive for the quality at 19,99€.

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  6/20/2021 - Jdevans Likes this wine: 91 Points

  Very very good at this price.

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  12/10/2020 - Pontifax Likes this wine: 89 Points

  Not a huge fan of Aussie Chard....BUT...this is intriguing .
  On nose: present( but not obtrusive) oak,lime peel, and a faint ghost of menthol(?)
  On palate: all of the above, as well as tart nectarine, green apple and no signs of butter, nor vanilla ...dare I suggest an attempt at " Chablis"?....tried the higher end " Heytesbury" 2005 of this property ( no notes) 10 years ago ...very impressive....this is a good shellfish wine.

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  11/28/2020 - TK_Chicago Likes this wine: 87 Points

  Notes of ripe and fresh golden delicious apples, partial malo (definitely some butteriness), subtle use of French oak but a definite sweet quality. M+ Acid, Full bodied. Powerful but not clunky and heavy

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View all 17 Community Tasting Notes

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