Chivite Colección 125 Vendimia Tardía 2023

Chivite is one of Navarra's most established estates, and this Colección 125 Vendimia Tardía is its late-harvest white, built entirely from Moscatel de Grano Menudo. The small-berried Muscat is left on the vine into autumn so the grapes concentrate sugar and aromatics before picking. Navarra's continental climate, with warm days and cool nights as the season turns, slows ripening and preserves the acidity that keeps a sweet wine of this style fresh rather than cloying. The wine is fermented in barrel and then aged nine months on its lees, where contact with the spent yeast adds texture and a subtle savoury weight, while the oak contributes a light vanilla frame and slow oxygen exchange that rounds the palate. The colour is bright gold. The nose leads with white peach, apricot and orange peel over honey and white flowers, the Muscat grape clearly stated. The palate is sweet but carried by acidity, with a clean stone-fruit finish. Serve well chilled, around 8 to 10 degrees, in a small white glass. It works as an aperitif and alongside fruit tarts, blue cheese or a fresh goat cheese.