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This wine has a cool year 10% alcohol and a beautiful green/yellow colour. Great aromas (that jump out of the glass) of fresh apple and tropical fruits. These carry to the palate, and given a bit more prominence due to the slightly riper grapes. The sweetness is balanced by the fresh apple acidity that runs through to the finish.
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. Thankfully all of our Semillon is handpicked and the vineyard team did a great job of getting clean, sound fruit in. This vintage is stylistically on song, but a smaller production of Semillon than usual. All fruit was harvested before the damaging East Coast low wreaked havoc on the Hunter Valley. Excellent colours with plenty of luminous greens and bright acidity a feature.
Brokenwood has quite a history of Late Picked styles starting in 1983 and we have used Semillon, Gewurztraminer from the Hunter and Riesling from McLaren Vale. The fruit is allowed to get a bit riper and then the fermentation stopped when there was a perfect balance between acid, sugar and alcohol. Fermentation in stainless steel and using cultured yeast. Bottled in May 2013.
Fresh fruit and sunshine or an apple flan.
A vibrant wine style best consumed over the short term.
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.
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