Petersons Chardonnay Cuvee

Pale yellow-gold in colour with clear, clean straw hues. Lifted, ripe stone-fruit aromas of peach and white nectarine sit over crushed nuts and cookie dough, with a faint cheesy edge on the nose. The palate is rich, ripe and juicy — apricot, tangerine and honeydew melon up front, a broad but clean mid-palate with cinnamon and brioche, then a soft, dry, lingering finish. Made to drink now rather than cellar.

Petersons is a Hunter Valley family business. Colin Peterson and his parents Ian and Shirley planted at Mount View in 1971 and made their first vintage in 1981. The hilltop cellar door there has been home base for more than 45 years, looking out to Mount Sugarloaf and the Watagans. There are further cellar doors at Pokolbin, Mudgee and Armidale.

Cuvée here means a multi-vintage blend, three years assembled so each release tastes like the last. Blending across seasons evens out the Hunter's wet years and dry ones, which is the point of the wine. It is bottled at 14.3 percent, the fuller end for Chardonnay, and the alcohol shows as weight rather than heat.

Petersons matches it with pan-fried whiting, poached chicken in a tarragon and white wine sauce, or a sweetcorn risotto. Chill it properly and open it this year rather than next.