Wines in this style tend to be:

• Made from more neutral grape varieties such as Chardonnay (although there are many exceptions to this, as you can see above)
• From grapes harvested at medium to high levels of must weight
• Mainly dry or off-dry

Wines in this style tend to have:

• Moderate to high levels of alcohol
• Pronounced richness and complexity
• Used production methods that emphasize weight and richness
• Shorter settling times leading to musts with higher turbidity
• Fermentations at warmer temperatures to emphasize more complex aromas
• Fermentations carried out by ambient yeasts
• Barrel fermentations and Barrel Ageing
• Malolactic fermentation
• May go to bottle with light or no fining and/or filtration

Wines in this style tend to avoid:

• Low levels of sugar ripeness in the grapes
• Grapes with high levels of Botrytis infection, that may mask varietal character
• Production techniques that favour a lighter-bodied style, such as
  • Fermentations on highly clarified musts at cooler temperatures
  • Fermentations only in tank