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Villa Maria Keltern Chardonnay 2024.
Product Code:
29414416105948
Availability:
Price Is In-Bond, Duty And Vat Will Be Added On Delivery.
Country:
New Zealand Hawkes Bay.
Grape Varieties:
100% Chardonnay.
ABV:
13.5%
Case Size:
6 x 75 cl
£115.00
Throughout the 1960s Villa Maria was a one-man band. In 1961, at just 21 years of age, Sir George Fistonich leased five acres of land from his father in Mangere, Auckland and started off with just an acre of vines. The first wine under the name Villa Maria in 1962 was made with grapes harvested from this block. Today, Villa Maria is a globally recognised producer and adored for its bold, expressive and exceptional New Zealand wines.
Keltern is among Villa Maria’s flagship wines, showcasing the very best of the regions in which it’s grown. With exacting standards paramount, the season will dictate whether Icon wines are released in any given vintage.
The Keltern Vineyard was established in 1999. Sitting east of Maraekakaho and hugging the western edge of the Bridge Pa Triangle and the Ngaruroro river, this unique site has over time become synonymous with exceptional Chardonnay, earning its place amongst New Zealand’s finest with an un-paralleled consistency in blind tasting success across multiple formats since the initial 2002 vintage.
Vintage 2024: Spring conditions in Hawkes Bay started off warm then cooled off through flowering which resulted in a small fruit set and low yielding vines. A very warm January saw the Chardonnay grapes ripen up nicely with great fruit intensity and more moderate temperatures in February helped preserve fresh acidity. The 2024 Chardonnay harvest was off to another early start with Keltern vineyard picking starting in earnest in the last week of February. Hand-harvesting of excellent quality fruit with a minimal intervention winemaking approach, allowed Keltern’s unique characteristics to shine.
“The 2024 Chardonnay Keltern is sophisticated and richly concentrated. While the nose is a little oaky at first, that's the burden of youth. The 2024 offers clarity, concentration, freshness and fullness. A lovely phenolic texture leaves an appetising sensation in the cheeks. The flinty finish is long, precise and purposeful. If New Zealand had Grand Crus, the Keltern would be one of them. It's on form in 2024.”
95 points, Rebecca Gibb, Vinous, February 2026
“A serious, textural and flavorful chardonnay. On the nose it shows spiced apples, dried pears, baking spices and some cedar. Medium-bodied with fresh acidity. Seductive texture on the palate. Plenty of tension, yet it remains focused and driven. Long finish. Sustainable. Drink or hold. (...)”
95 points, James Suckling, October 2025
“A bold, rich style with plenty of fruit, oak and personality. From its first vintage in 2002, Keltern has long been the jewel in Villa Maria’s Chardonnay crown. Generous citrus fruit, roasted peach, struck match, nougat and toasted cashew. A powerful, complex wine with a sweet core of fruit and vibrant acidity, smoky oak and a pithy citrussy line to the finish. Quite tight now but its history attests to its ageing potential. The Keltern Vineyard was planted in 1999 in Maraekakaho, near Bridge Pa. Fermented and aged in French barriques, 46% new.”
95 points, Emma Jenkins MW, Decanter, May 2026
Throughout the 1960s Villa Maria was a one-man band. In 1961, at just 21 years of age, Sir George Fistonich leased five acres of land from his father in Mangere, Auckland and started off with just an acre of vines. The first wine under the name Villa Maria in 1962 was made with grapes harvested from this block. Today, Villa Maria is a globally recognised producer and adored for its bold, expressive and exceptional New Zealand wines.
Keltern is among Villa Maria’s flagship wines, showcasing the very best of the regions in which it’s grown. With exacting standards paramount, the season will dictate whether Icon wines are released in any given vintage.
The Keltern Vineyard was established in 1999. Sitting east of Maraekakaho and hugging the western edge of the Bridge Pa Triangle and the Ngaruroro river, this unique site has over time become synonymous with exceptional Chardonnay, earning its place amongst New Zealand’s finest with an un-paralleled consistency in blind tasting success across multiple formats since the initial 2002 vintage.
Vintage 2024: Spring conditions in Hawkes Bay started off warm then cooled off through flowering which resulted in a small fruit set and low yielding vines. A very warm January saw the Chardonnay grapes ripen up nicely with great fruit intensity and more moderate temperatures in February helped preserve fresh acidity. The 2024 Chardonnay harvest was off to another early start with Keltern vineyard picking starting in earnest in the last week of February. Hand-harvesting of excellent quality fruit with a minimal intervention winemaking approach, allowed Keltern’s unique characteristics to shine.
“The 2024 Chardonnay Keltern is sophisticated and richly concentrated. While the nose is a little oaky at first, that's the burden of youth. The 2024 offers clarity, concentration, freshness and fullness. A lovely phenolic texture leaves an appetising sensation in the cheeks. The flinty finish is long, precise and purposeful. If New Zealand had Grand Crus, the Keltern would be one of them. It's on form in 2024.”
95 points, Rebecca Gibb, Vinous, February 2026
“A serious, textural and flavorful chardonnay. On the nose it shows spiced apples, dried pears, baking spices and some cedar. Medium-bodied with fresh acidity. Seductive texture on the palate. Plenty of tension, yet it remains focused and driven. Long finish. Sustainable. Drink or hold. (...)”
95 points, James Suckling, October 2025
“A bold, rich style with plenty of fruit, oak and personality. From its first vintage in 2002, Keltern has long been the jewel in Villa Maria’s Chardonnay crown. Generous citrus fruit, roasted peach, struck match, nougat and toasted cashew. A powerful, complex wine with a sweet core of fruit and vibrant acidity, smoky oak and a pithy citrussy line to the finish. Quite tight now but its history attests to its ageing potential. The Keltern Vineyard was planted in 1999 in Maraekakaho, near Bridge Pa. Fermented and aged in French barriques, 46% new.”
95 points, Emma Jenkins MW, Decanter, May 2026
All our wines are stored in our importers bonded warehouse, which have the optimum environment for fine wine storage, by carefully regulating temperature, humidity and other microclimatic factors.
As such, please allow between 7 and 10 days for your delivery to arrive.
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