Shaw & Smith M3 Vineyard Chardonnay 2024

The Shaw & Smith M3 Vineyard Chardonnay is a regional benchmark Adelaide Hills chardonnay from the very talented duo of Martin Shaw and Michael Hill Smith. Sleek, mid-weighted and highly contemporary, this modern Australian exemplar has amassed a huge following amongst chardonnay lovers. 

"Precise, minerally and laser focused with a lovely hint of reduction, giving aromas of salty lemon peel, grapefruit, pie crust, nectarines and flint. The palate is tightly wound with a medium-bodied mouthfeel and a creamy yet energetic and bright palate, showing flavors of white peaches, pomelo and nectarines. A tightly wound and bright wine that will evolve nicely over time."  James Suckling

The 2024 vintage was sourced from the Lenswood, Piccadilly and Lobethal vineyards. The fruit is hand-picked and whole-bunch pressed, fermented and matured on lees in the finest French oak barrels for 9 months.

Expert reviews

"A juicy, tightly wound palate with great energy and concentration, the pristine fruit and oak beautifully integrated, displaying impressive length with vibrant acidity to drive it long into the future."  Nick Munday, Canterbury Wines - 95 points

"Precise, minerally and laser focused with a lovely hint of reduction, giving aromas of salty lemon peel, grapefruit, pie crust, nectarines and flint. The palate is tightly wound with a medium-bodied mouthfeel and a creamy yet energetic and bright palate, showing flavors of white peaches, pomelo and nectarines. A tightly wound and bright wine that will evolve nicely over time. Drink or hold. Screw cap."  James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com - 95 points

"Very light yellow in the glass and brilliantly clear, with aromas of broken chalk, lemon, malt and creamy lees, a hint of nougat too but it's still very young and a little reserved. A refined chardonnay with lots of living to do. Drink: 2026-2036."  Huon Hooke, The Real Review - 93 points 

"I’ve really come to like Adelaide Hills Chardonnay, which is not to say that I didn’t like it in the past, more a growing appreciation of the synergy of region and grape variety. This is a fine-boned kind of restrained style, though it’s not without flavour. I like the flinty texture, subtle application of spicy oak, and overall balance it has. There’s some peach and lemon verbena, grapefruit, lime rind, green olive maybe and cashew nuts, with a bright and crunchy finish of good length. Nice wine, though you have to like them on the leaner water-coloured side of the Chardonnay spectrum. Ideally needs a little more time in bottle. Drink: 2026-2032."  Gary Walsh, The Wine Front - 93+ points

About the winery

 Martin Shaw and Michael Hill Smith 

Shaw & Smith began over a long lunch in 1989 when cousins Martin Shaw and Michael Hill Smith decided to realise a long held dream to make wine together. Today they own three vineyards in the Adelaide Hills; at Balhannah, Lenswood and Piccadilly, totalling 59 hectares. The vineyards are planted to varieties that perform particularly well in the region, namely Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Shiraz.

Shaw & Smiths' first vintage was in 1990 and in 1999 they purchased a property at Balhannah, where they planted vines and built a winery and tasting room in time for the 2000 vintage. The 35 hectare Balhannah vineyard is planted predominantly to Sauvignon Blanc and close-planted Shiraz on property surrounding the winery at 340 - 380m elevation. The soil is free draining sandy loam over red clay with underlying quartzite and shale, with varying amounts of ironstone pebbles.

In 2012, the pair purchased an existing vineyard in the cooler zone of Lenswood, about 10km north west of the winery. The 20 hectare vineyard is at an elevation of 455 – 500m and was planted in 1999. Undulating with east and west facing aspects, the vineyard is planted mainly to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The soils are brown loams over clay with broken shale on the ridges.

In 2019 Shaw & Smith celebrated its 30th anniversary with the purchase of a cool-climate vineyard site in Piccadilly Valley just below the Mt Lofty summit. The land is in the highest, coldest and wettest part of the Adelaide Hills at an altitude of 550 metres. The 4 hectare site has been planted to chardonnay and pinot noir, with vines closely spaced at 11,000 vines per hectare, a density that’s considered the maximum in places like Burgundy and Champagne.

Site selection is particularly important in the Adelaide Hills, with its diversity of altitude, aspect, microclimate, and soil. They also use a number of different clones of each grape variety, which contribute different qualities to the final product.