HKD$280.00
The colour is a very appealing pale salmon. Nebbiolo has a floral element to its aroma and this dominates with almost but not quite, rose water background. The palate has vibrant spice/ginger notes and while technically a red wine, has plenty of zesty acid. A wine to be enjoyed over the next year or so.
Brokenwood’s fourth make of Rosé and again it is something special. For a start it is Rosato, Italian for Rose, as it is made from the Nebbiolo grape and in fact a combination of three clones 111 and 230 and MAT 10 grown at the Indigo Vineyard, Beechworth. Stylistically it is also European where the wine has fruit sweetness but a dry finish. The actual residual sugar is zero. We wanted to make a savoury wine that could withstand being chilled and have plenty of florals and texture on the palate. Enjoy.
Picked at optimum ripeness for the style, we partially crushed the fruit by foot stomping and then let the juice and skins steep overnight. The grapes were then pressed to tank and the juice dispatched to the Hunter Valley. A small amount was fermented in old oak but the majority in stainless steel tank. Bottled in early June 2019.
Nebbiolo is one of the main grapes of Piemonte in North West Italy and you can’t go past their famous cuisine, including antipasti and grissini - the metre long bread sticks. Foie Gras wouldn’t go astray either.
Best consumed over the medium term.
HKD$880.00
Semillon of the Year - 97pts
James Halliday Australian Wine Companion 2016
Trophy & Gold - 'Best Semillon'
2015 Shanghai International Wine Challenge'
Gold Medal
Sydney Royal Wine Show 2015
This wine has a beautiful colour, and perfect grapes/ripening means nothing interferes with the gentle aging. As the wine warms up, the citrus and some florals come in. Bees wax and then ‘toast’ will come in a few years. Lively palate, plenty of citrus pith and seamless acidity. A perfect follow up to the near perfect 2007 ILR and a wine that has a long future in front of it. Enjoy.
Mid January in the Hunter Valley always brings with it a slight nervousness in the wine industry. Having been battered in both previous years – drought in 2007 and pouring rain in 2008, it is no wonder. Black cats are certainly not wanted and ladders given a wide berth. Vintage 2009? The rain that plagued the 08 vintage finally eased up at the end of April and then no rain days in May. The middle three winter months normally dry for us saw another 250mm (10 inches) and then odd rain days through to the year end. Fruit set was not as complete but resulted in long loose bunches especially in the Shiraz. A good result.
Harvesting all by hand. The fruit was crushed, chilled and pressed immediately. Neutral yeasts were used for the fermentation, bottled in July. No oak and no malolactic ferment, only stainless steel.
Asian food, any seafood especially fresh shucked oysters.
Drinking well now but will improve with further bottle age.
HKD$520.00
The Beechworth ‘terroir’ has a distinctive fruit character of pear/peach fruit. The oak has minimal impact by using older French oak and mainly puncheons. The warm year has meant less citrus lift but has bran meal notes from the wild ferment and extended lees contact. The palate is quite rich with zesty acid line through to the finish. Maybe leave the 2012 and 2013 for a couple more years and enjoy this in its youth.
The success our neighbour (at Beechworth) Rick Kinzbrunner at Giaconda has had with Beechworth Chardonnay highlights the quality of this region. Different soils, aspect, clones & age of vines on the Indigo property will lead our Chardonnay in a different direction but with minimum winemaker input, the region still expresses itself. The two previous vintages of this wine have been very successful in wine shows around Australia and we think the 2014 will follow suit. A reduced crop due to frost on October 18 2013 and then a quite hot summer. Early picking avoided any heat damage.
Whole bunch pressing, wild ferment in new French oak have come together in spectacular fashion. The wine was fermented in 30% new French oak and the balance older, from a variety of cooperages.
Seafood to light meats.
Drinking well now but will improve with further bottle age.
HKD$470.00
The Beechworth ‘terroir’ has a distinctive fruit character of pear/peach fruit. The oak has minimal impact by using older French oak and mainly puncheons. The warm year has meant less citrus lift but has bran meal notes from the wild ferment and extended lees contact. The palate is quite rich with zesty acid line through to the finish. Maybe leave the 2012 and 2013 for a couple more years and enjoy this in its youth.
The success our neighbour (at Beechworth) Rick Kinzbrunner at Giaconda has had with Beechworth Chardonnay highlights the quality of this region. Different soils, aspect, clones & age of vines on the Indigo property will lead our Chardonnay in a different direction but with minimum winemaker input, the region still expresses itself. The two previous vintages of this wine have been very successful in wine shows around Australia and we think the 2014 will follow suit. A reduced crop due to frost on October 18 2013 and then a quite hot summer. Early picking avoided any heat damage.
Whole bunch pressing, wild ferment in new French oak have come together in spectacular fashion. The wine was fermented in 30% new French oak and the balance older, from a variety of cooperages.
Seafood to light meats.
Drinking well now but will improve with further bottle age.
HKD$480.00
Highly Recommended - 91pts
James Halliday Australian Wine Companion 2015
Silver Ribbon - 93pts
Bob Campbell MW
The decision to pick all the Pinot Noir early paid off handsomely. The colour is medium density with lovely purple hues evident. Fragrant Pinot Noir aromas of red cherry and background sweet oak. Soft entry on the palate with forest/dried fruit richness and excellent fruit tannins. Will increase in complexity with bottle age or enjoyed in its youth as a vibrant Pinot Noir.
The 2002 Pinot Noir grapes were the first off the new Indigo Vineyard at Beechworth and a stunning vintage to debut. As there are three clones planted over different sites there is the opportunity to process as a number of different parcels. Hence we have the varietal bottling as well as a Single Vineyard wine.
Beechworth had a perfect spring and ripening period over summer led to very high expectations. Winemaker Simon Steele quickly recognized the potential of the early fruit and with two other vintage staff packed their swag and headed to Beechworth. The rain at the end of February delayed the late ripening red harvest but everything came in good order.
Rentention of fruit character is always important. Processing involved cold soak of the must for a few days and included approximately 10% whole bunches in the ferment. No post ferment maceration was under taken. Oak maturation was in predominantly used French oak barriques and bottled at the 12 month mark. This is a blend of the 3 clones 114, 115 & MV6.
Duck, quail and steak tartare.
This wine will mature further although enjoyable as a rich young Pinot Noir.
Sold Out - HKD$230.00
Very appealing, salmon hued colour. Fresh fruit compote aromas of strawberry and blueberry. These follow to the palate plus floral glace fruit characters. The savoury palate is quite dry and balanced by a crisp acidity. Best enjoyed with sunshine and good company.
If we have said it once, we have said it a million times, the word normal just doesn’t exist for the Hunter Valley. There was a three week turn around in picking compared to 2014, and most Semillon was off in the last week of January. It was a very dry winter of 2014 with only 54mm of rain from May to July. A very good budburst and spring, but then a cold and wet December resulting in quite large canopies and disease pressure. We harvested all our Shiraz and to help concentrate flavour, we ran juice off the skins before fermentation. The French term being saignee™.
After crushing, approximately 10% of the juice is run off to stainless steel tank and the resultant, slightly pink coloured juice, then treated as a white wine. Bottled early to maintain the bright vibrant fruit character.
Pairs well with antipasti and grissini - the metre long bread sticks. Foi Gras wouldn’t go astray either.
Drinking well now.
HKD$490.00
Medium density colour and quite bright, limpid as Sangiovese is certainly not known for intense colour. Lifted stewed cherry/sour cherry aromas that are very appealing as a food wine. Some oak on the palate but mainly bright savoury Sangiovese red fruit and juicy acid/tannin balance. Medium bodied and a spicy finish makes for a perfect summer wine.
Brokenwood winemakers and crew don’t need too much encouragement to taste a range of world wine styles and one of our favourite countries is Italy. Add to this a progression of young winemakers from Italy over the years espousing the qualities of Sangiovese and Nebbiolo; it is not surprising to see these varieties under the Brokenwood label. An excellent 2013 vintage and then a mild winter and early 2013 spring had everyone looking forward to 2014. The frost event of October 18 was so widespread that vineyards from central Victoria right through to Cowra and Orange in the NSW Hilltops were affected. The Indigo Vineyard lost quite a lot of fruit and then to really test the vineyard crew, temperatures in late December hit 41C and 44C in mid-January. Some rain, nearly 50mm in late January did cool things down.Brokenwood winemakers and crew don’t need too much encouragement to taste a range of world wine styles and one of our favourite countries is Italy. Add to this a progression of young winemakers from Italy over the years espousing the qualities of Sangiovese and Nebbiolo; it is not surprising to see these varieties under the Brokenwood label. An excellent 2013 vintage and then a mild winter and early 2013 spring had everyone looking forward to 2014. The frost event of October 18 was so widespread that vineyards from central Victoria right through to Cowra and Orange in the NSW Hilltops were affected. The Indigo Vineyard lost quite a lot of fruit and then to really test the vineyard crew, temperatures in late December hit 41C and 44C in mid-January. Some rain, nearly 50mm in late January did cool things down.
Processing started with 3-4 day cold soaking and then a 4-5 day ferment with hand plunging. The oak regime with this wine matured in older French oak with 30% puncheons.
Pasta, of course or a good old classic BBQ.
Drinking well now but will improve with further bottle age.
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