Evans Vineyard was established in 1981 by visionary winemaker Peter Read, who realised that the climate and soils were ideal for growing then unheralded varieties from cool regions of the world. When Peter Read retired, he passed the torch to new owners Peter and Suzanne Evans, who maintain his legacy by devoting the vineyard to the continued production of cool climate wines of the world. The Evans vineyard is located at Myrrhee, in a picturesque tributary valley of the main King River system. The secret to the Evans Vineyard success is really no secret at all - attention to detail and a great vineyard site.

Our Valley Selection range of small batch wines are created from parcels of fruit carefully selected by our winemakers from a single vineyard. The wines explore the individuality of each variety and our expression of wine styles, while reflecting the unique region in which they are grown. Each bottle captures the essence of the growing season and the vineyard, nurtured by our growers, and then passionately crafted by our winemakers into remarkable and age-worthy wines.

Picked on the 15th March in the early morning at 6°C with a maturity of 12.4 baumé. The wine was gently loaded into press and only the free run portion was used for this single vineyard blend. The wine was racked partially cloudy and warmed to 12°C in tank where it was seeded with a yeast that enhances Chardonnay varietal character, aromatic finesse and contributes mid palate weight. The cool ferment was gently decanted into French oak barrels: 35% new, 35% one year old, with the balance of 30% two years and older. The wine fermented for a period of 18 days at a temperature of 20 - 24°C with regular stirring to impart ferment complexity into the wine. After alcoholic fermentation, the wine was stirred weekly and encouraged to go through malolactic fermentation with a neutral MLF bacteria strain. This provided depth and volume to the wine along with MLF aromatic complexity. Precise and careful cellar attention maintained the freshness of the wine while it rested and matured on lees for 14 months. The wine was racked from barrel and lightly fined and filtered prior to bottling.

A cold, wet start to the growing season proved challenging in the vineyards, with fruit set and ultimately yields lower than average. Summer began with high humidity, but during the ripening period became stable and dry. A balanced and even development of aromas and flavour occurred with fine natural acidity retained across our white varieties. While the quantity of grapes was down in 2024, the quality was fantastic.

Toni Pla Bou