Grandis Chenin Blanc 2025

Chenin Blanc from Grandis Wines in the Hunter Valley, barrel-fermented with minimal juice fining so the higher grape solids build a fleshier texture. Melon, quince, apple and citrus blossom run throughout, with generous mid-palate presence held in line by focused, crunchy acidity. Vegan-friendly.

Chenin Blanc is a rare grape in the Hunter, and Grandis is a label that goes looking for one. Shannon Burgess-Moore started it in 2010 as a side project while making wine for De Iuliis, where he still works. He is the son of Ian and Debra of Moorebank Wines, and the family's winemaking history in the valley reaches back to the 1830s.

The Grandis brief is alternative varieties, minimal intervention and experiment. Chenin fits it. Fermenting in barrel with more solids in the juice is why the wine feels fuller than its acidity suggests. There is no Grandis cellar door of its own. Every wine is poured at the family's Moorebank cellar door on Palmers Lane in Pokolbin.

Drink it cold with fish, roast chicken or a cheese board. The texture also stands up to a Thai salad with plenty of lime.