As we speak we ventured into McLaren Vale. When it comes to local weather that is between Adelaide Hills (cooler) and Barossa Valley (hotter). This was one of many first wine areas in Australia to be planted. The proportion of floor space planted with vines is the very best in Austria at 17%.
McLaren Vale has a big selection in soil sorts and wine kinds.
The speciality is previous vine Grenache. They’re ‘free standing’ bush vines.
The fist vineyard we visited was Yangarra. They produce all their wines from fruit grown on the property and use biodynamic viticulture.
Yangarra focuses on varieties from the Soutern Rhône and ages many of the wines in ceramic eggs. The winemaker is French.
The vineyards are within the cooler a part of McLaren Vale, about 2 levels Celcius (4 levels Fahrenheit) cooler than different components, principally sandy soils.
We tasted these wines:
- Ovitelli Blanc 2021 (73% Grenache Blanc, 27% Roussanne, aged in ceramic eggs for five months, of which 40% on the skins): very mild coloration, restrained aroma, creamy, elegant.
- Roux Beauté Roussanne 2021 (100% Roussanne, 45% aged on the skins in ceramic eggs and half in terracotta egg): earthy, structured.
- Roussanne Blewitt Springs 2022 (100% Roussanne from youthful vines, aged 6 months in 500 litre pungeons of French oak, 20-25% new): oak, fruity aromas, complexity via construction.
- Ovitelli Grenache 2023 pattern (aged 6 months in ceramic eggs on the skins, pressed 2 weeks in the past, might be aged for six extra months in ceramic eggs earlier than being bottled): elegant and contemporary, tannins nonetheless astringent.
- Ovitelli Grenache 2021: caramel, crimson fruit, texture, elegant, contemporary, tannins nonetheless grainy, wants extra time within the bottle
- Hickinbothan Clarendon Grenache 2021 (vines planted in 1971): crimson fruit, agency ripe tannins
- Excessive Sands Grenache 2020 (vines planted in 1946 with a low yield of solely 15-20 hl/ha, deep sand bush vines, open ferment after which transferred to a tank for additional maceration and malolactic fermentation, then pressed and aged in ceramic eggs, massive oak foudres, and 500 litre pungeons): oak, heat, agency ripe tannins.
- King’s Wooden Shiraz 2021 (98% Shiraz, 2% Viognier, 25% entire bunch, aged in oak pungeons of which 25% new): eucalyptus, agency ripe tannins.
- Ironheart Shiraz 2020 (100% Shiraz, 25% entire bunch, aged in oak pungeons of which 25% new): earthy, espresso, agency ripe tannins.
One member of our group had introduced a bottle of a 2015 100% Grenache from Châteauneuf-du-Pape to be in contrast with the Excessive Sands Grenache by Yangarra of the identical classic. The Yangarra was extra contemporary than its French counterpart, however the tannins wanted extra time to turn into delicate. The tannins within the Domaine Giraud Châteauneuf-du-Pape Grenache de Pierre 2015 (100 year-old vines) had been velvety, however the aroma was extra developed.
The second vineyard in McLaren Vale we visited was Wirra Wirra. The identify means “among the many timber” within the language of the indigenous individuals of the world. The vineyard was initially based in 1894 by Robert Strangways Wigley, a famous South Australian eccentric and state cricketer, and rebooted within the Nineteen Sixties. From 2010 they’ve moved to biodynamic farming. McLaren Vale has 40% natural vineyards in comparison with the Australian common of solely 5%. The dry local weather and funky breezes from the ocean assist to maintain the illness strain low. Wirra Wirra has sheep grazing within the vineyards as a pure option to hold the weeds in verify (you possibly can see within the picture that the neighbor removes all of the weeds; which implies that he lacks the pure cooling that the weeds will present).
Though there is no such thing as a phylloxera in South Australia, vines are grafted on completely different rootstock anyway to limit the water utilization and for vigour management. Wirra Wirra produces 1.8 million bottles per 12 months, 20% of their very own fruit from 20 hectares of Vineyards in McLaren Vale and 20 hectares in Adelaide Hills, and the remaining 80% from fruit from different farmers. The wine makers had been excited to inform us concerning the new tools that was being put in, which is a vibrating sorting desk that may assist to get simply the clear grapes (‘caviar’) to make wine from.
We began with a barrel pattern of the 2023 Catapult (100% Shiraz) whereas overlooking the winery. This was contemporary and medium bodied with fruity aromas and ripe tannins.
With lunch we had the next wines:
- The twelfth Man 2022 (100% Chardonnay, 8 months in French oak pungeons): oak, citrus, balanced acidity.
- Grenache Dry Rosé 2023: crimson fruit, not utterly dry.
- Catapult 2021 (Shiraz): delicate tannins, ripe fruit.
- Woodhenge 2021 (Shiraz, extra new oak than Catapult): perfumed, delicate ripe tannins. Advanced.
The lunch consisted of:
- Grilled asparagus with Sauce Gribiche
- Roasted and Uncooked Beetroot with goat’s cheese and macademia
- Roasted eggplant with Tahini dressing, Zatar, and pomegranate
- Black Angus Sirloin steak with salsa verde
- Zucchini salad with feta and mint
- Heirloom tomato salad
- Roasted potatoes with aioli
Then we had a tour of the cellar.
This was adopted by a vertical tasting of the flagship wines of Wirra Wirra (2 vintages of every wine):
- Church Block 2021 & 2014 (50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Shiraz, 5% Merlot): for AU$25 this can be a ‘critical’ wine that may age very properly. Each the 2021 and the 2014 are contemporary and have agency however ripe tannins. The 2021 has some herbaceous notes and the tannins within the 2014 have softened.
- Classic Bell 2018 & 2013 (100% Cabernet Sauvignon, the very best Cabernet fruit of the classic is used for this wine, it’s aged for 18 months in French oak, of which 20-25% new, after which aged for an additional 2 years within the bottle; in Australia it’s referred to as Angelus however identify is just not allowed for export as it’s the identify of a French château from Bordeaux): agency tannins with properly built-in oak (already within the 2018 classic), each are contemporary and the 2013 continues to be very important.
- RSW 2019 & 2013 (100% Shiraz, named after Robert Strangways Wigley, a famous South Australian eccentric and state cricketer who established Wirra Wirra in 1894, aged for 18 months in French oak, of which 20-25% new, after which aged for an additional 2 years within the bottle): each have agency however ripe tannins and are contemporary and stylish; the 2019 has a restrained aroma whereas the bottle age has introduced out the blackberry aromas within the 2013.
Our ultimate tasting for immediately was at Midday Vineyard, a really small vineyard that produces solely 30,000 bottles per 12 months. A lot of the manufacturing is bought via members of the wine membership (with a ready checklist to get within the membership) and the rest on the cellar door and a few export. Drew Midday, the winemaker and proprietor of the vineyard, is a really good man who makes very good wines. He has 6 hectares of his personal winery with principally Grenache and makes use of the fruit from a 3 hectare winery with Shiraz and Cabernet at Langhorne Creek, 50 minutes to the South. We tasted the next wines:
- Excessive Midday Rosé (90% Grenache with 10% Mataro (Mourvèdre) to refill the foudre): a full-bodied rosé with 14.9% alcohol however balanced anyway (if chilled).
- Midday Eclipse 2022 (81% Grenache, 14% Shiraz, 5% Graciano) & 2021 (90% Grenache, 6% Shiraz, 4% Graciano): lush however contemporary with ‘sticky’ tannins; the 2021 is extra contemporary than the 2022 and has considerably decrease alcohol (15.4% as a substitute of 16.0%).
- Reserve Shiraz 2022 & 2013 (50% entire bunch, 30% new oak): the 2022 is able to drink, full-bodied and plush with agency however ripe tannins. It is able to drink, however the 2013 exhibits that it may also be cellared for 10 years. The 2013 has darkish fruit, the tannins are nonetheless agency and regardless of round 16% alcohol each vintages are balanced and contemporary.
- Reserve Cabernet 2022 & 2016: each have an aroma like a Bordeaux, with the 2016 barely extra herbaceous aroma and barely decrease alcohol. The tannins within the 2022 are nonetheless fairly grainy and have softened within the 2016. Each are contemporary.
- V.P. 2022 (Fortified Grenache, 18% alcohol, aged 18 months in used barrels): blackberry aroma (barely developed), candy, agency ripe tannins.
- At AU$ 30 per bottle these wines provide exceptional worth for cash, so I’m not shocked there’s a ready checklist to turn into a member of the wine membership.
We had Chinese language for dinner at T-Chow:
- Prawn dumplings
- Vegetarian dumplings
- Prawn cabbage rolls
- Spring rolls
- Duck
- Inexperienced peppercorn rooster
- Steamed garlic scallops
- Salt & Pepper Lobster tails
- Smooth shell crab
- Pork Spare Ribs with Tamarind Sauce
- Salt & Pepper Eggplant
- XO Fried rice
There was wine with this as properly:
- Willunga 100 Grenache Rosé McLaren Vale
- Pewsey Vale The Countours Museum Reserve Riesling 2016 Eden Valley
- Dalrymple Pinot Noir 2022 Tasmania
- The Lane Sauvignon Blanc 2023 Adelaide Hills
