Thistledown, Suilven Chardonnay, Adelaide Hills, South Australia, 2025

Producer Profile

Thistledown was founded by Master of Wine, Giles Cooke who had a vision for a more elegant, textural interpretation of Australian wine.

Initial explorations resulted in access to many of the best vineyards, many of which were the previously unloved Old Vine Grenache. Incredible, historic fruit sources coupled with Giles’ increasingly adept efforts has quickly resulted in a reputation for being amongst the best in the country. Narrating the stories of these wines to an increasingly attentive global audience is Giles’ heartfelt commitment and mission.

Viticulture

Suilven Chardonnay is sourced from a single certified organic vineyard, where careful vineyard management and healthy soils produce fruit of exceptional purity and character. With such outstanding raw materials, the winemaking team's role was simply to preserve nature's good work. The fruit was hand-picked in the cool of the morning in late February and handled gently to retain its freshness, balance and varietal expression. The result is a Chardonnay that reflects the distinctive character of this exceptional organic site.

Winemaking

Fruit was transferred straight to press before a very slight settling of juice which retained a high solids content. A combination 1 & 2 year old French oak hogsheads and concrete eggs were filled and we waited for the natural fermentation to begin - which it did at quite a rate! The finished wine was held in barrel and egg, with regular battonage, for 10 months before bottling with only a very light fining and filtration.

Tasting Note

Aromas of honeysuckle, citrus rind, cinnamon and brioche lead through to a taut, textural palate of scented white peach, ginger and toasted almond.

Food matching

A really versatile Chardonnay that pairs well with so many foods but our favourites would include rich fish dishes with buttery sauces, steak bearnaise and grilled veal.