Helen's Hill Estate Empress Reserve Chardonnay / 2025 / 750mL

The Helen's Hill Estate Empress Reserve Chardonnay 2025 is a polished, cool-climate white from the Yarra Valley, built around white peach and citrus with a creamy thread running through the middle. It is generous without being heavy, the kind of Chardonnay that fills the glass but still finishes clean.

Nectarine, grapefruit pith and lemon curd lead the aroma, with a gentle nuttiness and a hint of chalk sitting behind the fruit. Give it a few minutes in the glass and some honeysuckle and roasted hazelnut character emerges.

The palate is textural and quietly powerful, with stone fruit broadening across the mid-palate before a line of Yarra Valley acidity draws everything tight again. There is a faint saline grip on the finish, which runs long and dry rather than sweetly fruited.

Pair it with roast chicken and tarragon, seared scallops, a wedge of Comté, or pasta with cream, leek and smoked trout. It also handles richer seafood such as crab or marron without being overwhelmed.

Drink the Empress Reserve Chardonnay from now through to around 2032. Young, it shows its citrus and energy; with four or five years it should soften and pick up the toasty, honeyed weight that good Yarra Valley Chardonnay develops with time in bottle.