Chardonnay, Planeta 2024 75cl

Planeta have been making Chardonnay at Menfi, in the south-west of Sicily, since 1995, and it quickly became one of the island's most famous white wines. It's the bottle that proved Sicily could do serious, world-class Chardonnay, not just easy-drinking Mediterranean whites.

The vines sit in the warm Menfi coast, but the wine's balance comes from the winemaking as much as the site. The 2024 is 100% Chardonnay, fermented and aged around twelve months in French oak barriques, a good portion of them new, with the wine kept on its lees and stirred regularly. The result reads like a New World Chardonnay for body but keeps an Old World spine.

The nose is a swirl of tropical citrus, mango and pineapple, vanilla and a whisper of salted butter. On the palate there's lemon and apple, Sicilian almond, candied orange peel and a saline, mineral undertow that keeps everything fresh. It builds weight and opulence in the glass, and the finish is impressively long, closing on almond custard and white flowers.

At around £36 this is a confident, creamy Chardonnay with genuine complexity. Drink it now with a little air, or hold a bottle for two or three years to let the richness settle further.

How to Serve

Serve at 10-13°C in a broad glass. Half an hour of air, or a brief decant, lets the tropical fruit and oak show their best.

Where to Drink It

The River Cafe for its Italian heart. Brat in Shoreditch with something off the grill. Bibendum for a leisurely lunch.

Food Pairings

Reach for roast pork with fennel, or a rich seafood risotto. Grilled swordfish, that most Sicilian of fish, would be a natural too.