The JC's Own Freestyler 2023 is a textural white blend from the Barossa Valley, built on old-vine chenin blanc and crouchen with sauvignon blanc, chardonnay and pinot gris in support. Fermented wild and left on lees, it sits somewhere between a crunchy summer white and something with a bit more chew.

Aromatically the Freestyler leans on nashi pear, quince and lemon curd, with beeswax and a faint ginger spice from the short time the fruit spent on stalks and skins. The palate follows with white peach and grapefruit pith, then a savoury, almost bready thread from eleven months on lees.

Structurally this is a dry white with real grip. Acid runs firm and slightly chalky through the middle, the skin contact adds a light phenolic drag across the tongue, and the finish is long, faintly saline and dry rather than fruity. Bottled unfined and unfiltered, so expect a touch of haze and a little more presence in the glass than a squeaky-clean Barossa white.

Pour the 2023 Freestyler with roast chicken and lemon, pork belly, salt and pepper squid, a bowl of mussels, or a hard washed-rind cheese. It also handles ginger, coriander and chilli better than most whites at this weight.

Drinking well now through to around 2029, with the chenin backbone likely to reward a couple of years in the cellar. Serve it cool rather than cold and give it fifteen minutes to open up.