Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay 12pk - NSW
Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay 2023
~ Langtons 8th Edition 1st Classified ~
~ Wine Ark's Most Collected Wine 2024 ~
A benchmark Margaret River Chardonnay internationally renowned for its power, concentration and immense length on the palate.
Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay 2023
"A very pale lemon with a vaguely green hint running through it, this is pristine, intense, beautifully balanced and seamless. The oak has almost been completely absorbed, although it is fair to say that it'll probably look even better in twelve months. The wine is, however, immensely enjoyable now. The nose reveals hints of apricot flesh, limes, citrus skins, oatmeal, Madagascan vanilla, gentle touches of grilled cashews, stone fruits and jasmine. Such intensity but meshed with freshness, energy and elegance. Powerful but poised, there is incredible length here, seemingly never-ending, with laser-sharp acidity just one of the many components. There is complexity already evident, although one suspects it is a shadow of what is to come. The intensity never wavers for an instant over the full journey. Stunning stuff, it will still be magnificent in twenty years, likely even more so, and still have life ahead of it. Leeuwin have made some mindbogglingly good Chardonnays over the years, but I think none better.” 99 points. KEN GARGETT, WINE PILOT
“This is a case of the planets aligning with one of the great names in Australian chardonnay from what I think is the finest vintage in the history of West Australian modern winemaking. This is quintessential Leeuwin, controlled power, but with the subtle finesse and delicacy that is the signature of this great vintage. The nose is a wonderful mix of quince paste, cut lime, spice, grapefruit, and a subtle dusting of powdery talc. The palate captures the vintage so well. The flavour profile gradually builds and accelerates with tremendous drive through to a powerfully long finish, which is an essential part of the Leeuwin DNA. And yet all of this is done with such beautiful restraint and a controlled structure. It's such a young wine at the minute, but you know that deep within there's real power and latent energy that we'll see it develop so typically into a great mature chardonnay with extended cellaring. Up there with the finest releases.” 99 points. RAY JORDAN, WA WINE REVIEW 2026
“The 2023 Art Series Chardonnay shows the oak more clearly than some other vintages in the tasting lineup, though I attribute that to the adherence of the estate to the 100% new French oak élevage regardless of the conditions, coupled with the cooler, more benign conditions of the 2023 season, which, by the way, was sensational. The wine leads with white peach, cashews, fennel seeds, preserved lemon and brine, while the palate shows staining intensity from the fruit. There is a sensational display of the Gingin clone, powered by a shimmering exhaust of acidity and shaped by firm phenolics. This is excellent. Following a typically wet and windy winter in 2022, a prolonged cool and drizzly spring persisted until early November, when conditions became warmer and drier. From that point, the growing season was characterized by stable weather, with warm, sunny conditions continuing through to early April. Flowering in Chardonnay and Pinot Noir occurred in early November under favorable weather conditions, supporting consistent fruit set and bunch development. Summer temperatures were generally moderate, ranging from 26 to 32 degrees Celsius, with few significant heat events or rainfall interruptions. These conditions contributed to a gradual and even ripening period, allowing fruit to develop flavor, concentration and acidity in parallel. In the absence of significant marri flowering across the region, bird pressure in the vineyard was higher than in some previous seasons, necessitating extensive netting to protect the crop. Chardonnay harvest commenced on 23 February and continued through to the first week of March. The season was characterized by steady ripening and relatively uniform fruit development across vineyard sites.” 98 points. ERIN LARKIN, THE WINE ADVOCATE
“We’ve been reviewing this wine for nearly 20 years and have covered more than two decades of vintages. It has a track record. To me, the 2023 tastes like a kid doing handstands on lemon sherbet; like sunlight on rippling water; like the lemon-balm leaves I picked this morning just outside my kitchen door which I crushed in an ancient cool white-marble mortar before I popped them in a tea cup. It tastes like the love child of bergamot and honeydew melon. It tiptoes, like a child through the dewy grass of an orchard on an early summer morning, and I can taste the sweet strands of green summer grass. You could drink this baby now. But I’d wait.” 17.5/20. TAMLYN CURRIN, JANCIS ROBINSON.COM
“Light bright yellow, a very youthful colour for a 2023, and the bouquet is likewise fresh but also seriously detailed, with creamy lees, malt, nougat, beeswax and custard apple aromas, the palate similarly complex and profound, with a chew of oaky tannins that lingers on the aftertaste. Long, long carry. A very powerful chardonnay, searingly intense and strongly structured, and needing more time yet to come into full harmony. Outstanding.” 98 points. HUON HOOKE, THE REAL REVIEW
“As you’d expect from an excellent vintage and a producer of exceptional chardonnay, this is superb. It glimmers light straw and olive in the glass, and it’s superbly modulated – from the flavours to the texture. It is quite a pared-back style, tight and linear with restrained power, savoury and moreish. Just another cracking Art Series Chardonnay.” 97+ points. JANE FAULKNER, HALLIDAY WINE COMPANION
“Lime and finger lime, Solo! (though ideally don’t slam it down fast), fresh pineapple, pear, plenty of clove and ginger oak, aniseed, a light flinty smokiness, honey cashew and white flower perfume. It’s medium-bodied, there’s a richness to fruit and oak here, yet it stays tight and controlled, with pitch-perfect acidity, a light chalkiness to texture, closing with superb length. Power with precision. You can drink it now, sure, though ideally wait for all the components to mesh. It’s an outstanding release.” 97 points. GARY WALSH, THE WINE FRONT
“A totally sublime wine. The perfect intersection between fruit weight, ripeness, acidity and oak. Plenty of ripe peach, but this is complemented by more savoury almond-like nuttiness and distinct minerality on the palate. I can even imagine a hint of sea-spray on the finish. Great length and persistence of flavours, with the textural components continuing to excite long after the fruit has dissipated. Lime notes too close. A superstar!” 97 points. BARRY WEINMAN, WEINMAN ON WINE
“Very good wine. Quite the palate-staining flavour profile. Lots of inward concentration, Glossy and very polished. Not a hair out of place. It feels very fine wine territory, undeniable. And a kind of gulp ability to it too; moreish and refreshing. Everything just so. Very, very good wine.” MIKE BENNIE, THE WINE FRONT
About this Producer
Few stories can be told about modern Australian wine without mentioning the amazing rise of Margaret River, and Leeuwin Estate as a pioneer. Founded by Tricia and Denis Horgan in 1979, it is the star estate of Margaret River’s southern area;
with a particular pedigree in its famed Chardonnay, but also relatively recent acclaim for Cabernet and Shiraz.
Producer website: https://leeuwinestate.com.au/
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