James Halliday is arguably Australia’s best-known wine writer and critic. His annual “Wine Companion”, the preeminent guide to the best wines produced in this country, was released in early August and we were very, very pleased to have received an entire page of very positive reviews, including the following reviews for current release wines in our range:
“Opens with great colour; mouth filling waves of black cherry and satsuma plum follow precisely in the tracks of the bouquet. It has exception finesse, line, length and balance. Trophies: Best Tasmanian Red Wine and Best Tasmanian Wine Hobart Wine Show ’18, plus significant gold medals in other shows. 96 points
2016 Reserve Pinot Noir (stocks are extremely low)
“Exceptional colour; a best-barrel selection from its ’16 siblings, with more depth and intensity to its array of dark fruit flavours. A showcase of gold medals, six from Asian competitions, and three from reliable sources including Sydney and Melbourne.” 96 points
2012 Cuvée Traditionelle sparkling
“60% pinot noir, 40% chardonnay, disgorged Oct ’18. Around 80% of the base wine spent 5 months in very old French oak to allow MLF [malolactic fermentation] to develop naturally before the wine was tiraged and spent 6 years on lees. A most appealing wine, the price a bargain for consumers, but causing the bank manager to weep.” 95 points
“Estate-grown, hand-picked, whole-bunch pressed, wild fermented and matured in French oak for 9 months (20% new). Picked at perfect ripeness, white peach, melon and grapefruit all present and correct. No hint of the fearsome Tasmanian acidity. Double-gold San Francisco International Wine Competition ’18. 13.2% alc.” 95 points
“Crushed and destemmed, tank fermented. Shows the strawberries and cream character that this variety typically produces as a rose. Quite mouthfilling on the palate, but the freshness and liveliness gives it a feeling of buoyancy which adds to its appeal. Essentially dry, but there is some fruit sweetness which suggests it will drink well with a good chill.” 92 points
“Displays its cool climate origins on the bouquet with some green leafiness, but the varietal characters of blackcurrant, redcurrant, mulberry and cedar are attractive. The flavours are ripe and the palate is soft until the firm, drying tannin takes over. Needs a bit of time.“ 91 points
We’re also very pleased to retain our 5-star rating, awarded to an “[o]utstanding winery capable of producing wines of very high quality, and did so this year”, generally with two wines ranked 95 points or more – which we comfortably reached!
Cheers, Fred
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