2023 is the third vintage that Stargazer have used both fruit from their own Palisander vineyard in Coal River Valley and from a grower in the Upper Derwent Valley. The nose shows plenty of white nectarine and fresh pear with some background secondary notes of gunflint and almond meal. The palate is complex and round with mandarin juice mouth-watering acidity, the fruit and oak integrated and focussed. Wound up tight, with lovely texture and length. Be quick, very limited.

The Stargazer plot was planted in 2017, south facing and is primarily brown dermosol on Jurassic dolerite. The Derwent Valley vineyard owned by Bernand Brain was planted in 1999 and there are soils white silica sand over sandstone and clay. The site is north-east facing.

The Palsander portion was hand harvested. Whole bunch pressed and transferred directly to oak and concrete egg for ferment. The oak portion represents 80%. Wild ferment in 500L French oak (Mercurey), 20% new. Full malolactic. No lees stirring, left in barrel for 8 months, the blended in tank for 3 months before bottling.

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97 POINTS, HUON HOOKE, THE REAL REVIEW

Bright light yellow; intense struck flint aromas at first pour, almost an electrical fire aroma. Then citrus and spice. The wine is tense and lean on the tongue, firm and taut, the focus tight and the acidity brisk. Long and linear in the mouth, with intense grapefruit and gooseberry flavours. It really benefits from some air. Great fruit concentration and energy. A superb wine that shows enormous potential.

96 POINTS, DAVE BROOKES, HALLIDAY WINE COMPANION

A finely detailed chardonnay produced with grapes from the Palisander vineyard in the Coal River Valley and a site high up in the Derwent Valley at Ouse. Beautiful stone and citrus fruit tones mesh with a pitch-perfect level of struck match complexity along with hints of apple sorbet, soft spice, crushed riverstone, wildflowers and ozone. Tautly framed but expressive and long of flavour with soft, hazelnutty oak tones and briny drive that is nicely in line with the other characters. Such delicious, pristine drinking; winemaker Sam Connew is on a roll here.

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Stargazer is owned by Samantha Connew, a New Zealander originally from Blenheim in New Zealand. She got inspired with wine whilst studying law
at Christchurch University, working part time at a wine bar which was owned at the time by a qualified winemaker. Realising law wasn’t for her she
went back to study viticulture and began working vintages around the world, starting at Elk Cove in 1996, one of Oregon’s most respected Pinot Noir
producers.
Vintages in Sicily, Western Australia, Oregon for a second time, McLaren Valley, Hunter Valley and then settling in Tasmania specifically to start her own winery. 2012 marked the first vintage of Stargazer. For the next few years she purchased fruit from Huon Valley and Derwent but had a passion for the Coal River Valley. She passionately believes that for her this subregion was the ideal spot to be able to make the kind of Riesling, Chardonnay
and Pinot Noir she wanted. In 2015 this dream became a reality and she purchased an 11 hectare site, of which 1 hectare was planted with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Since then, she has planted 4 more hectares compromising of Riesling, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. She is still buying some fruit from growers while these new plantings establish themselves. Samantha makes the wines at Pooley currently, just a few miles up the road from her
vineyard. The range is both expressive and concise. All wild fermentations, no added acid, gentle use of oak. Palisander has a touch of extended time on skins, some whole bunch of techniques in the Pinot Noir.