Hello to the taste of Leeuwin Chardonnay at a very fair price. GARY WALSH

Leeuwin Estate is an Australian masterpiece and represents the dream of ‘coming from nowhere to somewhere.’ It is an accidental creation born from happenstance and naivety yet steeped in ambition and generosity. Since 1969, Tricia and Denis Horgan have played an important role in defining the Margaret River wine region’s identity. Their vision to produce ‘wines which rank with the best of the world through the pursuit of excellence has been fulfilled in their lifetime, achieved by brilliant planning, hard work and a remarkable fidelity to nurture the nature…ANDREW CAILLARD MW, vintagejournal.com

Leeuwin Estate has always been my choice as Australia’s best maker of chardonnay, its wine a mixture of purity and intensity, with length and balance underwriting its greatness. And it never misses the mark. JAMES HALLIDAY, Wine Companion 2021

This is an incredibly impressive Prelude cabernet. Look at the price, look at the quality: if Margaret River cabernet is your thing, get on board… GARY WALSH, winefront.com

Hello to the taste of Leeuwin Chardonnay at a very fair price. GARY WALSH

You have to pinch yourself when considering that this is Leeuwin's second level chardie. Fact is, it's very good…RAY JORDAN,rayjordanwine.com.au

2022 Vintage: Tim Lovett of Leeuwin Estate "an epic vintage!" JAMES HALLIDAY

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Leeuwin Estate are mighty Margaret River producers, revered worldwide for their chardonnay and cabernet. Both sit amongst Australia’s best wines. While they’re brilliant wines and sell out in a flash, they are expensive, in the three-figure zone. So when their ‘second wines’  are released it always piques our interest. 

Following the Bordeaux model, second wines are often made from similar fruit sources and raised side by side with their older siblings with a similar level of love and care. They differ in their style and accessibility, you don’t need to wait 10+ years to open them. They have the pedigree without the price tag.

The 2022 Prelude Chardonnay is a thrilling glass of chardonnay with a savoury wildness and bold core threaded together by a tensile current of acidity. Its immediacy is  enthralling. Made from a mix of clones, it's 100% barrel fermented and sees less new oak (35%). True to the Leeuwin chardonnay style it doesn’t go through MLF. 2022 has produced an opulent wine, with a flush of refreshing acidity and smokey oak charm. 

The 2020 Prelude Cabernet is elegantly framed with an undertow of power. As Gary Walsh says, ‘This is an incredibly impressive Prelude cabernet. Look at the price, look at the quality: if Margaret River cabernet is your thing, get on board.’

Both wines overshoot their price point, offering delicious Margaret River wines at affordable prices. Grown in the mecca of Margs, surrounded by bush garrigue, lateritic soils, Karri forests and oceanic coastlines, they speak of their place eloquently and openly. The fruit precision on both reflects the hard work Leeuwin has been putting into their vineyards.

Hard to believe, but both fall in the mid $30 range. We're offering the chardonnay for $35 each in a 6-pack buy ($210) and the cabernet for $31 each ($186). Both wines offer a touch a decadence.

Cheers,

Gabrielle