Mornington Peninsula - 17th February 2012

To a non-Australian, the drive down to Mornington Peninsula this morning was as unmistakably Australian a scene as yesterday’s drive to the Yarra Valley. But on this, my first visit, it felt somewhat more genteel, wealthier, as well as more scenic, with glimpses of Port Phillip Bay coming in and out of view. The road in the morning breeze, in parts canopied by giant gum trees swaying like some game of Oranges and Lemons. It’s rural, but dotted by grand architectural statements to aspiration, it doesn’t have the farmland feel of Yarra Valley, it’s more weekender, or triumphant retirement.

Nat White at Main Ridge

My first appointment is with Nathanial White at Main Ridge, who was both first in here in wine, and who remains at the top of the hierarchy for quality and reputation. He seems bemused by the encroaching Grand Designs. Gently spoken and thoughtful in tone, Nat explained “I was a civil engineer and I lived in London for a year in the 1960s. We spent 8 months travelling wine regions in a tent. My ‘moment’ came in Burgundy on a visit to Château de Pommard. When I came back I thought the climate looked similar in Mornington Peninsula. I began planting in 1975 with a range of varieties – Merlot, Gewurztraminer, Riesling, Cabernet Sauvignon, but Pinot Noir and Chardonnay did best, and that is what we expanded with.” The original planting in Pinot on the “Half Acre” was to UC Davis clones D2V5, D2V6, G5V15, and Burgundy clone MV6, with later plantings from Dijon clones 777, 114 and 115 in the newer “One Acre” block.

Though he clearly had an astute eye for the suitability of the land, he points to simple good luck as part of his success, as the region has turned out to be very successful for both Pinot and Chardonnay. His timing was also fortunate to be an early correspondent student of Brian Croser’s oenology course at what is today Charles Sturt University. “I enrolled in 1977 and took nine years to complete it. At the time there were no wineries in Mornington Peninsula, so this practical course was very useful.”

Green bunch thinning at Main Ridge

Nat points to two key developments in the past thirty years that have been a boost to quality. Firstly, bunch thinning. “We understood that bunch thinning put the vine’s energy into better ripening and flavour development in the remaining bunches, but it wasn’t until a visit to Burgundy in 2003 that we realised that is wasn’t simply a matter of reducing the number of bunches, but in selectively removing the green bunches.” My timing  - about a month from the start of harvest – was excellent to see exactly what he meant. “You see all these bunches have changed colour, but a few are still green. We go through now and drop these bunches. In a week or two they would also change colour and we wouldn’t no the difference, but they won’t be as fully ripe, so this is our chance to go through and remove them.” As an added bonus, Nat found that the wines made after bunch thinning didn’t require egg white fining as they settled and clarified naturally, and no longer had the “metallic” (as Nat characterises them) tannins to remove they used to have. The second development he points to came twenty years ago. “We began netting the vines. Before that we had to pick to beat the birds, but the nets give us protection to wait an extra crucial week.”

Main Ridge is a small, single family-scaled estate, set out immaculately with a beautiful, mature flower garden dividing the vineyard “backyard” from the small house winery and cellar. Though not quite as bijou as the “one acre” and “half acre” labels suggest (there are eight acres planted equally to Pinot and Chardonnay – and a barrel’s worth of Pinot Meunier), it has the feel of a tranquil English-styled country cottage retreat.

The tasting confirmed in the glass the careful, thoughtful, quiet tone set by this fascinating visit. The chardonnays are 100% barrel fermented in French oak barriques, 40% new. 100% malolactic fermentation.

2009 Main Ridge Chardonnay

Light, bright clear appearance; lovely fresh nose of apple pie, open and inviting; crisp apple on the palate, buffered by a round textured mid-palate, this finishes taut, with a ripe but high acid spine. It feels structured for ageing. Very fine. 92+/100

Nat feels that ten to twelve years ageing is optimal in most vintages. He especially doesn’t want to see with ageing what he describes as “bronze” colour notes, and “toffee / honeycomb” on the nose or palate. With age, they fill out and become a little honeyed, but generally don’t develop the characters he seeks to avoid, he claimed.

2008 Main Ridge Chardonnay

Pale and bright appearance; lovely complex and very fine nose, apple, with mealy notes, a touch of nut oil, this is complex and fresh and showing a little bottle age complexity on the nose; round-textured, gentley caressing texture, fine acid spine keeps it animated, good fruit – restrained, ripe, complex, mealy, sophisticated chardonnay. 93/100

2010 Main Ridge ‘The Acre’ Pinot Noir

AU$60 on the mailing list, AU$55 “at the dozen rate”

Fine pale fresh appearance; lovely perfumed nose, pure red cherry and raspberry, fragrant and fresh; fine, elegant, red fruit expression, silky mouthfeel with sapid natural acidity and a gently savoury edge on the finish. Lovely lacy silkiness right through. Reminded me of a very fine Volnay 1er Cru ‘Les Mitans’. Very fine, sophisticated Pinot. 92/100

2010 Main Ridge ‘Half Acre’ Pinot Noir

AU$70 on the mailing list, AU$65 “at the dozen rate”

Fine, light fresh colour; a bit more intensity on the nose compared to The Acre; a deeper shade of fruit and a little more spice on the nose; that same silkiness on the palate but deeper fruit expression and a wild / sauvage element. This is very fine, focused with real Pinot Noir vinosity and purity, fine tannins on the long finish. Just lovely. One of the finest Pinots I’ve had from Australia. 94/100

Also at the top of the quality stakes is Port Phillip Estate, just ten minutes down the road, but a world away. No English tranquillity here. There’s no sight of an impenetrable forest either, but I still feel like I’ve arrived on the wrong side of the Maginot Line, France’s ill-fated and obsolete defence against the 1940 Wehrmacht invasion. I see no guns, no pill-boxes, just concrete. Surveying its flowing length it begins to look more Memorial than Maginot, but I still can’t find the door.

One of these is Port Phillip Estate, one is the Maginot Line, one is the Australian War Memorial in London

I approach the only break in the fortress and then, quite unsettlingly in an Orwellian sort of way, a large door automatically swings open.

Inside it’s a complete juxtaposition, the flowing line of the wall softening the large double-height space, and a wall of glass on the other side of the restaurant-cum-wine tasting room opening up to the softness of the bush, pond, vineyard and rolling horizon beyond. It’s a neat trick. Here, it seems, is Mornington Peninsula’s bold statement, like Yarra’s Giant Steps felt yesterday. Not quite the buzz though, but very cool. Perhaps they need Phil Sexton’s iPod, or a woodfire pizza oven. Before I put my finger on it though I’m greeted by Tessa Brown, part of the winemaking team at Port Philip Estate and sister estate Kooyong.

Tessa Brown and her map, Port Phillip Estate

Homework

We begin at the beginning of Mornington Peninsula – the Paleozoic Age, some 350 million years ago, her tracing paper sketch over a map of the peninsular pointing out the key geological developments. “Two fault lines pushed up the peninsula’s soft curved spine. Extrusive [love that word!] volcanic flows made the basalt bedrock…” It was a wonderfully simplified, visually-aided lesson in important, and different, soil types at Port Phillip Estate and Kooyong, but as my eyes glazed over just a little, also a reminder that I need some remedial reading on the subject if I’m going to keep up. A+ Tessa, C- Linden.

Anyway, it’s important to know there are some key soil types here, ahem, and yes, that ridge line down the peninsula, offering different orientations to the climate-moderating influence of all that maritime stuff not far beyond. That’s about as much as I was able to absorb today, though did gain the impression (incorrectly?) that Port Phillip Bay perhaps spares Mornington Peninsula some of the extremes of frost and bushfire suffered in the slightly more inland Yarra Valley to the north.

Skipping forward +/- 350 million years, the estate’s modernity is more than a metre thick. “We are 100% ‘passive’ – it’s all solar energy, the drinking water is collected rainwater, and ‘black water’ is reclaimed and re-used here…”. Down the very expensive art gallery-like concrete stairs, that slide down that wall to the cool cellar and winery below. A large state-of-the-art bottling line is in full swing. Reassuringly, the cellar is not a showroom for new oak barriques – it’s sophisticated and sensitive in approach than that. The first thing I see is a beautiful new 6,000 litre oak fudre.

There’s an old saying that if you want to make a small fortune in the wine making business, start with a large one. It’s quite evident here that Giorgio and Dianne Gjergja, who bought Port Phillip Estate in 2000 and Kooyong in 2004, and who built that amazing winery in 2009, have deep pockets. Winemaker Sandro Mosele gets the toys he wants.

All this might appear as vanity, or outright fantasy, if not for the fact that the  line up of wines is both interesting and good as I was about to discover.

2011 Port Phillip Estate Sauvignon Blanc

“80% fermentation in tanks plus some barrels for complexity. We look for minerality and a textural feel that’s good with food.” AU$24 at the cellar door.

Pale, bright; gently aromatic on the nose, creamy, vegetal with  a touch of blackcurrant leaf and passionfruit; quite round in style and texture, the acidity pulls in the finish though there is no greenness. Good, quite stylish sauvignon. 88/100

Tessa: “2011 was a La Niña year with more of that tropical monsoon weather driving further south, including Victoria. It was the wettest year since 1974 and extremely cool, but with humidity and rain. We had problems with botrytis and downy mildew. But for a hard season we pulled through okay. We did a lot of fruit dropping to ensure a clear crop. On the flipside we got great acidities and hardly had to acidify anything.”

2011 ‘Clonale by Kooyong’ Chardonnay

Tessa: “Less of a mineral line, more fruit-forward style.” Whole bunch pressed, native yeast ferment in French oak, 12% new. AU$30 at the cellar door.

Bright, light appearance; fresh, slightly flinty nose; quite juicy on the palate, good fruit, touch of just-ripe banana and juicy just-ripe banana acidity, fruit-driven with appealing freshness and vivacity. Quite expressive and sumptuous too. This is a very nice chardonnay, great value too. 89/100

2010 Port Phillip Estate Chardonnay

From a 1.82ha block planted in 1987. Whole bunch pressed, native yeast, French oak maturation, 15% new. AU$32 at the cellar door.

Pale, green-gold; lovely complex nose, low key with plenty of mineral detail; taut and fine on the palate, a finely-honed chardonnay showing both concentration and elegance. Reserved now, it feels not far from coming more fruit forward in say, 1 – 3 years. Very good. 90/100

Tessa: “2010 was as close to textbook as we could ask for – rain at the right intervals, no need to crop thin, no surprises. The Pinots in particular are built for ageing.”

2009 Kooyong Estate Chardonnay

Estate only fruit, whole bunch pressed, barrel fermented in French oak, 25% new, native yeast. AU$38 at the cellar door.

Green gold; a fairly ripe expression in contrast to the PPE ’10, but still with good freshness; a fairly voluptuous middle here, concentrated fruit, round and fleshy, nice juicy stone fruit flavour and acidity on the finish. Good, bold, drink now. 89/100

Tessa: “2009 gave a small flowering, so a small crop to begin with, and then summer heat meant we had some burn issues. The wines have realy intense fruit.”

2007 Kooyong  Estate ‘Faultline’ Chardonnay

Single vineyard wine (1.02ha), as per ‘regular’, 30% new oak. AU$60 at the cellar door.

A touch of colour development; peachy on the nose and showing development, some savoury notes, fairly opulent; tauter in acid structure that expected from the nose, with fairly developed flavours. Fully evolved. Drink up. 86/100

2011 ‘Massale by Kooyong’ Pinot Noir

Froom Kooyong and Ballewindi vineyards, 16.27ha. 100% de-stemmed, native yeast, French oak, 15% new. AU$32 at the cellar door.

Fine, brightly clear glinting ruby; a ripe, spicy nose, sherberty raspberry and beetroot expression, though a little sulphur reduction too; taut, slightly sharp acidity, raspberry, though fruit weight and expression a little masked by reduction right now, some savouriness. Perhaps not showing quite right at the moment? 85+/100?

2010 Port Phillip Estate Pinot Noir

From a 5.08ha vineyard planted in 1988. 100% de-stemmed, native yeast and native malolactic, 12 months in French oak, 20% new. AU$38 at the cellar door.

Bright clear mid-depth Pinot ruby; lovely fragrant nose, at the ripe generous end of the Pinot spectrum but still varietally expressed, crystalline raspberry and dark cherry, a touch of leafy complexity, aromatic; juicy and ripe on the palate, generous with attractively flavoursome sticky-edged muscular yet supple tannins. After this opened a little more in the glass a distinctively pine needle-like note on the nose and palate developed. Very good. 91/100

2009 Kooyong  Estate Pinot Noir

100% estate grown, winemaking per ‘Massale’, 25% new oak. AU$44 at the cellar door.

Quite full-coloured; a touch reduced on the nose, rich dark fruit underneath; fleshy, bright, intense fruit, cherries burst forth, plush, velvety-textured though quite pure still, some spiciness at the end. Long finish. This has broad appeal, “yum yum!” I wrote, underlined. 90/100

2009 Port Phillip Estate ‘Morillon’ Pinot Noir

From a 1.01ha vineyard within the estate, planted 1987. Per the regular bottling, 30% new oak. AU$50 at the cellar door.

Bright, clear, fairly deep colour; a real dark sweet spice signature to this, a touch of pine, dark fruit, quite fresh; fairly richly-fruited, firmly-structured, opulent, with a somewhat chewy structure and some obtrusive warmth of alcohol* on the spicy, pine-laced finish. (* only 13% despite this impression). Perhaps I didn’t get the right read on this, but it seemed a little exaggerated in style. 85/100

2009 Kooyong Estate ‘Meres’ Pinot Noir

From single, 2.7ha vineyard, winemaking per ‘regular’, 30% new oak. AU$68 at the cellar door.

Clear, deepish ruby; a savoury top note on the nose, fine red cherry fruit, a fragrant note of celery leaf; soft, velvet, fleshy palate, zippy acidity, red cherry like fruit, fine sticky tannins. Good. 89/100

2008 Kooyong Estate Pinot Noir

AU$44 at the cellar door.

Bright garnet, a touch of colour development at the rim; mature aromas, red cherry with savoury notes overlaid; soft, fuzzy-focus fleshy-feel, the freshness of fruit has dissipated, savoury, leafy-edged tannins and a touch of dryness on the slightly austere finish. A bit disappointing. 85/100

I was too busy chatting to take a note on the 2009 Port Phillip Estate Shiraz, except that I really liked its meaty-savoury edge, cool expression and natural feel. A bit Cornas-like I thought and no bad thing.

On the whole, a good line up I thought with the Port Phillip Estate wines seeming to have an edge of the Kooyong Estate examples, at least as far as my palate is concerned. Kooyong’s “Clonale” bottling offered some of the best chardonnay for the price I’ve had in Australia and I wouldn’t hesitate if I saw it on a restaurant wine list. I’d also be really interested to see that 2010 Port Phillip Estate Pinot Noir again in a couple of years. Serious stuff.

Next up a short cellar-door visit to Stonier, the estate with the early export reach to help put Mornington Peninsula on the international wine map.

2008 Stonier Mornington Peninsula Chardonnay Pinot Noir

Sparkling. 70% Ch / 30% P.N.

A fresh bready nose with a touch of nougat; fresh, vibrant mousse, soft-edged ripe acidity, grapefruity tone, still quite yeasty and fresh. Good 88/100

2010 Stonier Chardonnay

A fine, fruit-forward style, stone fruit expression, round, ready. 87/100

2009 Stonier ‘KBS’ Single Vineyard Chardonnay

27 year old vines from the original planting.

Stone fruit expression again though a little more mealy than the regular bottling on the nose; focused but fleshy, quite round. 90/100

2009 Stonier ‘Lyncroft’ Single Vineyard Chardonnay

From an elevated East-facing site, 10km away

Mineral notes on the nose; cool, fresh, fine textured, well focused, unupholstered chardonnay that should reward a year or two more in bottle. Impressive. 91/100

2009 Stonier Reserve Chardonnay

“A barrel selection from all sites”.

Quite rich, mouthfilling and mealy. 88/100

At this point I manage to snag assistant winemaker Robin Gardner as he stepped into the tasting room and I asked a few quick questions –

“We whole bunch press the fruit, settle the juice at 14 degress Celcius, inoculate with two yeast strains – though we are not looking for a yeast ‘character’. We rack. Around November or December we take the regular Stonier bottling out, blend the barrels for the reserve and return that to barrel for around 6 months. Malolactic is natural, but we pull some up. The regular Stonier sees around 5% new barrels, the single vineyard and Reserve bottlings around 30% - all French oak. We use 4 coopers selectively, with medium to medium+ toast.”

Well, that was my 5 minute download. The team were getting everything ready in the winery. “Picking begins next week”. Back to the wines…

2010 Stonier ‘Peninsula’ Rose

100% Pinot Noir.

Pale and pink – juicy strawberry on nose and palate, nice acidity. 86/100

2009 Stonier Mornington Peninsula Pinot Noir

“We buy in some local fruit from long term growing contracts”.

Fine garnet ruby, mid depth of colour; bright cherryish fruit – a floral and attractive nose; ripe, soft, supple and delicious fruit, easy but fragrant in style, soft finish. Very nice. 87/100

2009 Stonier ‘Lyncroft’ Pinot Noir

“A cooler, East-facing site at 135 metres.”

Mid colour, blue-fruit expression, sweet perfume; juicy, fairly complex, soft-tectured, the definition is a bit smudged but with good ripe acidity. Good Pinot. 90/100

2009 Stonier ‘Windmill’ Vineyard Pinot Noir

Fine mid-hued appearance; sweet, leafy-edged nose, a touch of pine / eucalypt in the aromatics; fine, quite focused – a very fine seam of pure fruit, fragrant, well structured on lively acidity and ripe supple tannin. Long. Very very good – wait 3 to 4 years. 92/100

2007 Stonier Reserve Pinot Noir

“A blend of the best fruit”.

Mid clear garnet, with a touch of development showing at the edge of the rim; a rich nose, darkish expression, plum, dark cherry and smoke; soft-textured on entry, sweet, a touch of tea and some savoury elements. Showing a little development. This is good, though not as clearly focused as the two ‘09s. 89/100

Cafe at Merrick General Store building

With a little time to spare on the way to my next appointment, I stopped for lunch at the Merrick’s General Wine Store, which more or less is Merrick, if you’re looking at a map. Once the rural gabled, corrugated iron-clad hub for newspapers and supplies, it has seen a ground up sympathetic restoration and today operates as the cellar door for three small wineries. But I wasn’t here ot taste, I was here to eat. A happy choice as it turned out, the simple but sophisticated modern Australian fare reminding me a little of Prue Leith’s good sense recipes. The cake cabinet had me drooling. I’ll be back!

My final stop for the day was Paringa Estate, where Business Manager Samantha Bourke and her colleague had everything lined up for me to taste when I got there in the late afternoon, so I was straight in –

Goose escort to cellar door, Paringa Estate

2011 Paringa Estate Riesling

From a 20 year old vineyard nearby, cool temperature fermentation in stainless steel. AU$20 at the cellar door.

Water clear and bright; red apple and citrus on the nose; taut, leanish and dry on the palate. Not especially long. Clean and tidy. 84/100

2010 Paringa Estate Pinot Gris

Cool temperature fermentation in stainless steel. AU$20 at the cellar door.

Very pale; apple and little crisp pear on the clean low key nose; bright, zingy fresh, green apple, some breadth and texture, taut finish. 85/100

2009 Paringa Estate Viognier

From the Robinson Vineyard. Barrel-fermented in 4 year old oak. AU$28 at the cellar door.

Pale green gold; fairly cool fresh appley nose, not especially fragrant; seems quite tight and lean for Viognier on the palate, a little hint of oiliness the clue to variety. A bit austere for this variety I think. 82/100

2009 Paringa Estate ‘Peninsula’ Chardonnay

Barrel fermentation and 10 months in used barriques. AU$22 at the cellar door

From managed contract vineyards in Mornington Peninsula

Pale green gold; low key nose led by a little burnt match stick; fairly crisp expression on the palate, generous fruit concentration fairly taut and tightly wrapped right now. Good. 88/100

2010 Paringa Estate Chardonnay

Barrel fermentation, 40% new, 60% one year old. AU$35 at the cellar door.

Fresh with a touch of vanilla oak on the nose, hint of caramel – fairly rich; a good combination of focus and creaminess on the palate, fairly concentrated, banana-spectrum fruit, quite long. Very good. 90/100

2008 Paringa Estate ‘The Paringa’ Chardonnay

Barrel fermented “high percentage” of new oak, 20% malolactic fermentation. AU$50 at the cellar door.

Bright green-gold; fresh, youthful and oaky on the nose; generous, glycerine-laden texture on the palate, mouthcoating with lots of small-berry extract, ripe expression with banana-like fruit, tangy ripe acidity, and noticeable but manageable alcohol (14.5%) on the finish. This is a big, bold, fairly old school chardonnay, well made within the context of that style. 90/100

2011 Paringa Estate Rose

AU$18 at the cellar door. From Pinot Noir and Shiraz – the 2011 saw quite a lot of Pinot Noir.

Pale rose; strawberry nose with a bit a whiff of sulphur dioxide; crisp, a bit hard in texture, some ferment flavours, some alcohol elbowing the finish which finishes a touch bitter. Clean and crisp, but a bit stern. 79/100

2010 Paringa Estate ‘Peninsula’ Pinot Noir

AU$27 at the cellar door.

Bright, very clear mid-spectrum Pinot colour; bright raspberry, leaf, red cherry nose; quite big, voluptuous and soft, glycerine-laden though some juicy acidity carries the middle along to a satisfyingly fruity and fragrant finish. A youthfully appealing, fleshy Pinot. 89/100

2009 Paringa Estate Pinot Noir

AU$60 at the cellar door.

Clear, deepish Pinot shade of ruby; opulent dark cherry nose, quite sexy and spicy and bold; bold ripe fleshy Pinot on the palate, held into shape by finely structured tannins. Long, fragrant, spicy finish. A very good Pinot in the fleshy, spicy camp. 90/100

2008 Paringa Estate ‘The Paringa’ Pinot Noir

AU$90 at the cellar door.

Richly-scented dark cherry spectrum Pinot nose; complex and fragrant – ripe cherry, quite scented, good flesh, high quality fruit, a touch of leafiness, finely structured, cherry pit notes, seductively scented finish. This offers plenty of complexity and pleasure now, but should reward cellaring. 91/100

2010 Paringa Estate ‘The Paringa’ Pinot Noir

In bottle but not yet released – kindly opened for me by Lindsay McCall

This took some time to get going in the glass. A cool, floral edged aromatic profile emerged from the glass, leafy notes, very fine; juicy, taut, red cherry fruit, with the floral, scented notes building with time, finely structured, quite fulsome weight (14.5% abv), but stays juicy right through to the long finish. 92+/100

2009 Paringa Estate ‘Peninsula’ Shiraz

AU$25 at the cellar door.

Licorice-edged blackberry nose with a touch of meat and black pepper; blackberry fruit on the palate, coolish expression, a little dryness in the tannins at the end. 87/100

2008 Paringa Estate Shiraz

AU$50 at the cellar door.

Fine blackberry and white pepper nose follows through to the palate which is fleshy and bright. A lively, aromatically pleasing shiraz, though with fine underlying structure for mid-term ageing. Very good. 91/100

2007 Paringa Estate ‘The Paringa’ Shiraz

AU$80 at the cellar door.

Quite spicy, though the sweet and savoury-edged fruit has swallowed all that new oak (100%) well, leaving this with a “La Chapelle”-like combination of sweet blackberry fruit, meatiness and savoury edge. A bold (14.5% abv), Hermitage-like wine, it is good, though not as graceful as the ’08 ‘regular’ estate bottling. 90/100

The Paringa Estate was founded by former school teacher Lindsay McCall, who began planting in this ex-orchard in 1985. The venture has been a great success, with numerous trophies and championship wins on the Australian judging circuit, and a solid following in the domestic secondary market at Langton’s. (Paringa Estate is distributed in the UK by my old friend Amelia Jukes at Hallowed Ground and in Hong Kong by Ponti Trading)

Paringa Estate's Lindsay McCall

Lindsay gave generously of his time with me after he popped in to see me in the tasting room half way through the whites. I mentioned that on my way in to see him at No.44 Paringa Road, I had noticed a large house and vineyard for sale just up the road at No.52. “They want AU$3.5 million for it – the house has pretty commanding views of the bay, and it comes with seven acres under vine – which we manage under contract.” It seems growth in Mornington Peninsula as a wine district may be constrained when vineyard land must be bought at Melbourne playground prices. While the Lucky Country continues to dig all that rare stuff out of the ground, that trend seems unlikely to change.

What a couple of days I had in Yarra Valley and Mornington Peninsula. To say that was a bit quick would be a bit of an understatement. But the taster I experienced left me wanting more.

Next stop, Martinborough, New Zealand…

Yarra Valley - 16th February 2012

Barely a week on the ground – that’s all I allowed myself for Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula, Martinborough, Waipara, Central Otago and Auckland. A week is not enough time to cover any single one of these regions fully, but having just returned to Hong Kong, I’m pretty excited still by the experience and what got packed in to those few days. In the end, as always, it came down to the amazing generosity of the people I met along the way. My glass is raised to all of you!

After an overnight flight from Hong Kong via Singapore, I caught up with Australia’s Bordeaux importer specialist John Baker in central Melbourne’s Movida Aqui bar. Sardines, and a nice cold beer and I was feeling much more in the zone.  Then a short drive to the upscale Melbourne suburb of South Yarra for din dins at Bistro Gitan – creative, very tasty, yet unfussy, uncluttered food prepared just right. Melbourne sets the food bar high, but I thought this was ‘worth a detour’. Very smart bistro. I’m still thinking just how tasty that bavette was.

Next day – the 16^th – and it was time to head out to the Yarra Valley. Despite previous visits to Melbourne, I’d never before visited its wine country, so this was all new to me. After half an hour of easy driving on Melbourne’s superb motorways, it seemed like I would arrive in the valley before ever really leaving Melbourne’s eastern sprawl, but it seemed rural fairly suddenly by the time I reached Yarra Valley classic Mount Mary near Lilydale.

John Middleton put this estate – and to some extent Yarra Valley – on the map in the late 1970s. Encouraged by Victoria wine producing doyen Colin Preece to plant in Yarra to make a ‘restrained’ style of wine, and having visited the classic regions of Europe, he planted Bordeaux and Burgundy varietals. Somewhat eccentrically perhaps he planted these in alternate rows, such that, if you wanted to pick Cabernet, you’d find it in every tenth row or so across the whole of that first block, planted in 1972.

I was shown around by former vet, and now second generation at Mount Mary, David Middleton. I asked him what they’d discovered in so many harvests – did the best of each variety come from certain rows each year? His son, winemaker Sam Middleton seemed to think that the imprint of each clone made the bigger difference to the fruit each year and that the block was fairly homogenous otherwise. It was a reminder – and not the last one – of just how new winemaking is in the regions I visited. Old vines are a new thing. And those old vines were chosen from the very limited range of clones on offer in the late 60s and early ‘70s. Most are ungrafted – phylloxera still at bay. Though at Mount Mary, vine disease Eutypa is gradually strangling their ability to bear and ripen fruit.

We toured the estate, and I saw some really beautiful Grenache fruit hanging from the new block, from very young vines. Roussanne, Marsanne, Clairette, Syrah, Mourvèdre and Cinsault were planted at the same time, so we can look forward to some Rhône rangers to add to their Bordeaux (‘Quintet’ – red; ‘Tiolet’ – white) and Burgundy (Pinot Noir and Chardonnay) range. “These are all grafted, so they offer phylloxra insurance, and they also offer climate insurance”, explained David. “Since the first wines [late ‘70s] we have seen an increase of potential alcohol here of more than 1.5%. We aim for wines in the 12% - 12.5% arrange. Ten years ago we might start picking in early March and finish in mid-April. Today that would be mid-February to mid-March.”

General climate change is not the only issue here. The region, it seems, can suffer hail storms, frost (major loss in ’07 from an ’06 frost), and major heat spikes. The spikes might offer enough to worry about in themselves as acids plummet, sugars soar, and berries shrivel, but here they bring on a particularly Australian problem – bush fires. These adversely affected harvests in 2007 and 2009. Talking with my brother David, who has lived in Melbourne the past few years, the fires seemed to scar more than the land, they etched their mark on the psyche of Victorians. The 2009 fires – an event known as Black Saturday - claimed many lives, and caused enormous destruction in bush, livestock, vines and settlements. Today, heat spikes that nudge the mercury up into the 40s Celsius are met with warnings to evacuate. “Prepare. Act. Survive” is the public warning mantra.

I quietly reminded myself why I am on the drinking end rather than the growing end of this business. But I also reflected on the awesome pioneering energy and sense of constant striving and development I feel anytime I visit ‘New World’ wine regions. And I almost always feel that I am spending time with the “goodies” in our world – those striving for excellence, while looking after the people whose lives they touch – mine included. I felt a sense of admiration for David and his family. “This place was my Dad’s vision, and I’m looking after it now while my son takes the reins as winemaker”.

Left to right – Kaspar Hermann, assistant winemaker; Sam Middleton, winemaker and third generation; Nick Coulthard, sales and distribution; and Dr David Middleton, proprietor, CEO, second generation, and formerly a vet.

John’s vision for “cool climate” restrained styled wines capable of long cellaring seemed evident in the wines I tasted today. 35 acres under vine produce some 5,000 cases or so across four main labels:

2008 Mount Mary ‘Triolet’

From 68% Sauvignon Blanc, 25% Semillon, 7% Muscadelle. 12.9% abv

Pale green gold; fresh hay, melon and lightly musky nose, the muscadelle coming through on the coolish expression; the palate is juicy, with crunchy acidity, some green capsicum – firm, quite malic acidity [no malolactic fermentation employed – I checked], a little oak phenolic texture [no new oak] and breadth beneath the still young linear expression. This is still quite slender and and firm. Needs a little time to fill texturally and aromatically, though this does feel very cool and a little austere. 88+/100

2008 Mount Mary Chardonnay

Light green gold; fine fresh nose, a little oak evident, fairly reserved; fine-textured, bright fresh and fleshy, a touch of peach, pear, this is long on the palate with a lovely sense of freshness and juiciness, good complexity. Good now, but seems ageworthy. 92/100

2006 Mount Mary Pinot Noir

13.3% abv. Light garnet showing some colour development from bottle age, fine hue, lightish depth of colour; a sweet cherry centre on the nose with attractive savoury overlay, spicy notes, quite cool expression with some sous bois notes, this is a complex, open nose; mid-weight on the palate, sappy, good red cherry fruit, a touch of currant, strawberry, spice. The only distraction from all this pleasure is quite a cool streak of acidity which pushes the complex finish but that stands out as a little shrill. I don’t see that harmonizing. 89/100

2006 Mount Mary ‘Quintet’

50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Cabernet Franc, 26% Merlot, 3% Malbec, 3% Petit Verdot. 22 months in French oak barriques, 30% new. 12.9% abv

Fine fresh ruby colour, clear; fragrant, quite leafy nose, Cabernet-led with notes of fresh crushed blackcurrants and blackcurrant leaf; on the palate this is brightly expressed with squishy curranty fruit, dark plum, lively ripe acidity, a touch of capsicum crunch and a long, fine supple finish. This is delicious now, and there is real finesse here. Should age quite well. 90/100

I left Mount Mary with a sense of confidence that while they are in a period of some transition, the Middletons are here to stay. I think their continued aim to produce wines of restraint, with alcohols below 13%, is admirable, though in the Triolet and Pinot just tasted I wondered if they were hitting the limits of real phenolic ripeness in doing so. It will be interesting to see the Rhône varieties come on stream in the years ahead – a reminder of the great flexibility the ‘New World’ has in finding the right combinations of site, grape and style.

It was then just some 12 kilometres across the valley to another ‘anchor tenant’ of the Yarra Valley, Yarra Yering. The estate, with roots in the nineteenth century when wine production was thriving here, was resurrected in the late sixties by another visionary of the valley, Dr Bailey Carrodus.

Meeting with recently appointed winemaker Paul Bridgeman (ex-de Bortoli), it didn’t take long to see that the modern day legacy of Dr C’s Yarra Yering is steeped in individuality and innovation. “The Doc’s” own 500kg trundler-bottomed fermenters fill the winery. In the height of harvest there must be dozens of little ferments going on. “We use a lot of stem and return” explains Paul. “ I smell the stems coming out of the de-stemmer and if they smell good – free of mould and other problems – I add them in to the fermenters using a big sieve. It’s acts like a tea bag”. A simple, clever way to manage extractions from skins and extraction from stems separately.

“When Dr C planted the first block in 1969, the Cabernet and Merlot vines arrived without tags, so he planted them randomly.” Ripening at quite different times that must make for a lot of work checking ripeness vine by vine instead of row by row in the lead up to harvest.

In 2009 I attended a major vertical tasting of the wine based on this vineyard – “Dry Red No.1” (perhaps not quite the romantic in wine labeling as John Middleton!). Over thirty vintages were opened – mostly from the cellar of organizer David Wainwright and co-hosted by long-standing winemaker Mark Haisma (now making wine in Burgundy, as you do). While there were one or two duffers, on the whole, the vertical – back to third vintage 1975 – showed that The Doc got it right – grape and site. The second block, planted to shiraz lent itself to “Dry Red No.2”, and the third, planted later to Portugese varieties (!) to Dry Red. No.3. In subsequent expansion, blocks were named after “battles the French lost”, as Paul explained. “Dr C ran out of blocks before he ran out of battles”. Today an “Agincourt” bottling is released. I asked if France was a major export market. “The UK has always been a strong market for us”, was the answer.

“The expansion began in the ‘90s with the Portugese varieties [Touriga Naςional, Tinta Cão, Tinta Amarela, Alvarelhao, Roriz and Sousão], with the rest over 1995 – 2005. 80% of Dry Red No.2 comes from this expansion, and 20% from the original vineyard.” Indeed, the estate runs to a full catalogue of grape varieties, including a pretty special Viognier I was able to taste from one of two barrels made (the 2008 is current release at AU$162 a bottle from the winery).

The exception from this ongoing developmental planting, is the neighbouring vineyard called Underhill, “that Dr C bought from a mad Yugoslav” (meant affectionately I’m sure!) in 1987, and bottled and labeled separately from 1989. “The site has more clay and gives quite different aromatics and tannins, and the same quality level as No.2. It’s a favourite of mine”.

It was clear with such diversity that a tasting in the cellar with Paul was going to be a treat. We started with a barrel of 2011 Chardonnay, with lovely fresh apple and pie crust, lovely fruit – very fine and pure and naturally expressed I thought. It has 100% natural acidity and full malolactic fermentation.

With the pendulum having swung dramatically away from the full, buttery, oaky chardonnays of the ‘80s and ‘90s, it seems that today some producers – not just here but in California too – are pushing too far toward a very lean and mineral style though early picking and preventing malolactic fermentation (which converts firm malic acid into creamy, softer lactic acid). But the results are often a bit mean and hard I think. So it was encouraging to taste something here so in tune with a natural, ‘middle’ position.

The 2011 Viognier, (this year two barrels, usually around one and a half), seemed more restrained and mineral in style than I expected. Those varietal floral and apricot notes are there, but in a surprisingly restrained expression, the wine being driven more by a rich, structured, mid-palate and long finish. I’d love to see this again in bottle. (from a 1984 planting, the wine sees 100% malolactic fermentation).

The 2011 Pinot Noir, from a ‘bottom block’ barrel was very pale in the glass, with fragrant red cherry and savoury notes on the nose and a slender but expressive red fruited, very varietally pinot noir palate. “2011 was a very cold, wet, late year Paul explained. About 30% - 50% of the vats see stalks returned – we don’t use whole bunches in the fermentation.” Paul had explained the various Pinot blocks while we were out in the vineyard – the ’69 block provide concentration and structure, the “powerhouse” in the blend; the ’81 block at the top, provides the “high notes” and perfume, while the ’84 block provides flesh and generosity. For the 2010 vintage they are planning to release a 4-pack with the final blend as well as a bottle from each block. I’d love to try that.

The 2011 Touriga Naςional, which makes up around 50% of the Dry Red No.3 showed a deep rich vibrant ruby colour with sweet vibrant currants and cracked pepper (as much from the fragrant stems as from the fruit I imagined); the palate was quite special – quite currant, then cloves and a distinct note a cardamom on the finish. Delicious!

The 2011 Underhill Shiraz, which reached a natural 12.5% alcohol by volume showed a full ruby tone, with a really quite Northern Rhône-like blackberry and white pepper nose; lovely bright fruit on the palate, scented, finely structured, with some meaty, savoury notes on the long finish. Lovely balance, and fine intensity. Should show Yarra elegance very well.

Next up, a barrel of 2011 Shiraz from old vines, with a few Marsanne skins in the ferment. The colour was more noticeably deeper in tone; a more subdued, more deep-set nose; great fruit on the palate, tightly wrapped, layered in texture, with lots of energy and enormous power on the finish. “We are not looking for flesh forward-styled wine, we’re looking for a canter lever effect with the weight of intensity delivered toward the back of the palate.” Paul seemed rightly proud of this little parcel, “We plan to bottle it separately”. Put me down for some please!

We followed this with some 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon from old vines. This was quite varietally perfumed with a touch of leafy coolness, but definitely well into the black currant register; full and quite rich on the palate, solidly-built and itense.

I would love to have spent the whole morning down in the cellar, but was grateful for this quite indulgent tour and tasting. I felt Paul – in spite of his very solid CV – was quite excited to have his hands on Yarra Yering. With some of the oldest vines in the valley, a tradition to look after but also plenty to play with, who wouldn’t be?

Back inside with Cellar Door Manager Janine Hellas, there was an array of goodies to try. Perhaps the most surprising – and for me the highlight here – was the 1998 Yarra Yering Dry White No.1, late released and available for sale at the cellar door. I didn’t note the price but I think it was around AU$100 a bottle. Full gold and shot through with colour, the nose offered notes of baked custard / crème patisserie to the fore, vanillin, citrus, steamed asparagus, and a touch of lanolin, it smelled mature, complex and zingy; the initial impact came from the crisp core of bright, elevated acidity, this was very juicy, coolly expressed, with lots of flavor, citrus, waxy-textured with a very long, intense capsicum and lemon finish, and great phenolic texture right through. I really liked this. 92/100

Janine explained that the label was discontinued with the 2000, but will be coming back on stream in the future. Meantime I would certainly be on the look out for older vintages on the back of this sample tasted today.

2007 Yarra Yering Pinot Noir

AU$83 at the cellar door.

Light garnet; a savoury meaty expression of Pinot, gamey, with noted of dark plum and fragrant cherry; the really lovely texture was my first impression, gentle, layered and caressing, the flavours seem fully evolved with notes of plum, smoke, and savoury meaty notes, which make it quite morish. Long finish. 91/100

2009 Yarra Yering Dry Red No.3

AU$79 at the cellar door.

Deep garnet; fragrant nose – plenty of top notes over dark berry fruit, spicy notes; the palate is quite bright and fragrant in style with soft tannins that make this feel plush – very drinkable now. Delicious. 88/100

2006 Yarra Yering Dry Red No.2

AU$88 at the cellar door.

Light garnet; a fragrant, leafy, Cabernet-led nose, some cedar, a touch of tobacco, some chocolate notes too; a rich mid-palate, though this feels a little disjointed between quite cool, leafy and red capsicum notes, and a fairly plush full-bodied (14.5% abv) weight. Complex, but not entirely coherent. n/r (must check my note from the 2009 tasting).

2001 Yarra Yering Underhill Shiraz

AU$95 at the cellar door. They also have the ’07 ($83), ’06 ($85), ’04 ($89), and ’03 ($91) – not tasted. The policy, as Paul explained, is to do an early release in May, and then put the wine away until they think it has done something interesting in bottle. It is then re-released, with AU$2 added for every year it spends in the cellar.

Mid, clear garnet; the nose shows some plumminess, but this is gatecrashed by disappointingly dull notes of molasses, dried dates – this comes across as a bit porty and tired on the nose; rich, quite figgy and toffee, though not discernably ‘hot’ with alcohol on the finish. A decadent style, but lacks freshness. n/r

2004 Yarra Yering Dry Red No.1

AU$92 at the cellar door.

Fine clear garnet; an immediately forthcoming and fragrant nose, red currants and hot sweet peppers; juicy fruit, crunchy acidity, red fruit expression with that note of hot sweet chilli peppers (the aromatics – not the heat) recurring. Fairly complex, plenty of reserve. Should be quite interesting. 90/100

2007 Yarra Yering ‘Agincourt’ Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot

AU$83 at the cellar door. The 2006 is also available at….. AU$85, not tasted.

Clear garnet; lifted piquant nose, varietally expressed, green-edged aromatics; there is a lovely fleshiness here, plump, with zingy acidity, and a touch of capsicum on the finish. This seems more fruit-forward, satisfaction coming from a complex array of youthfully fruity and vegetal aromatics suggesting early drinking. 89/100

2003 Yarra Yering Potsorts

Uses the same varieties as Dry Red No.3. and used to be called ‘Portsorts’ until the EU deemed it contravened the protection of the name Port. AU$91 at the cellar door.

(Was ‘Portsorts’). Rich figgy nose, toffee sweet; rich on the palate, the spirit a little hard an elevated, mature very ripe figgy fruit, molasses-like maltiness the savoury edge of which does the job in providing some balance to the sweet-toffeed fruit. Fun, yummy, if not especially refined in style. 86/100

My short drive over to Yeringberg left me reflecting on the way people like “The Doc” and John Middleton – each in the different way – have re-energised and re-invented this once proud wine producing Victorian Victorian valley, and in what in wine terms is an incredibly short amount of time – some 40 years. I had expected to see the traditional labels they created – ‘Quintet’ and ‘Dry Red No.1’ for example, still flourishing. What came as a little more unexpected was the degree to which the pioneering side of that energy continues today – the sheer diversity at both properties, the ongoing experimentation with grape varieties and winemaking.

My next stop was Yeringberg, where that line to the nineteenth century is still plugged in, and in more ways than one. I met with Sandra de Pury, winemaker and along with viticulturist brother David is fourth generation de Pury at Yeringberg, an estate founded by Swiss settler Frédéric-Guillaume de Pury in 1863. The original winery and buildings he used still stand and form the ‘modern’ winery today. Along with wine, cattle and sheep have sustained the family since the beginning on this 1200 acre station. The ascending driveway off the Maroondah Highway was long enough for me to begin to doubt I was on a driveway at all, but from the top I was treated to sweeping views of the valley below. The original house was lost to a fire long ago, but both Sandra and David have houses on the original site.

What history here. The original wooden winery still stands, complete with hoist to take the bins of grapes in through a second level mezzanine receiving window and onto a rather ingenious ‘rail’ system for tipping the grapes into the giant old fermenter cuves below. It looks like it must have been a high tech marvel in its day. The room is filled with artifacts including a dust-caked horse-drawn buggy in the corner. Clearly also a storage and overflow room today, “this you can see is a working farm, and on a farm you don’t throw things away – you use and re-use them. So there’s a lot stored here. But my project this year is to get all the stored stuff out of here and make a little museum of this.”

Facing the ‘museum’ winery is a quite beautiful stone cellarhouse, that could just as easily be converted to museum too, except it is in full swing today as both winery and cellar for this boutique (1200 cases) wine estate. Equipment is rudimentary but seemingly adequate. Small stainless steel fermenters stood ready for the approaching 2012 harvest. “There’s no temperature control system built in. I run a water hose around the fermenter when I need to and pump cold water through it, and we also use hessian for temperature control.”

A white Northern Rhône-like blend and a Bordeaux-like blend is made. The latter was 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 11% Cabernet Franc, 10% Malbec and 9% Petit Verdot for the 2008 blend. “We pick early in the morning when the fruit is cool, and everything that comes in gets co-fermented. As soon as we have everything we put the blend together at that point. We make the selection decisions in the vineyard and on the sorting table. After that, its in.”

The white wines are made one level below, where it is noticeably cooler – some 18 degrees celcius on this pretty warm February afternoon. On this floor, juice for the whites is fed down through the window at ceiling height. Chardonnay has a long tradition here, and the white Rhône varieties have joined the line up in the ‘90s.

2010 Yeringberg Marsanne / Roussanne

AU$50 on the mailing list. Stainless steel ferment, no malolactic fermentation, aged in old oak hogsheads for 9 months

Fine floral nose; crisp with great mouthfeel, lovely balance and and length. Feels very natural. Youhtful and a little shy but very good. Crisp finish. Should reward two or three years in the cellar. 89+/100

2010 Yeringberg Viognier

AU$30 on the mailing list. First vintage was 2008 and has been very well received by Yeringberg customers. Wild ferment in stainless steel with a small portion goes into old hogsheads.

Definitely in the immediately perfumed school of Viogner, this leaps joyfully from the glass with notes fresh cut apricot and white flowers; round, juicy, fleshy with lively acidity (“we picked a little of this early for acidity and some later for fruit, richness and that fragrance”), fresh, vibrant and long. Delicious now. 90/100

2009 Yeringberg Chardonnay

AU$50 on the mailing list.

A portion sees fermentation start in stainless steel and then run off into barrels while another portion is fully barrel fermented. French oak barriques, about 30% new.

Lovely nose, quite pure and expressive; round-textured, ripe, with honeysuckle notes, a fine-focused structure, plenty of flesh and length. Very good. 91/100

Just how much of an issue those bush fires have been became quite start as we switched to the reds. All of what would have been the 2009 estate Cabernet blend was ‘declassified’. To stress the point “DECLASSIFIED” is overprinted in red on the label and the wine closed with screwcap. “The smokey one” Sandra ventured…

2009 Yeringberg “declassified” estate red

AU$15 on the mailing list – in my view, a real bargain.

Moderate depth of ruby; fresh and currant on the nose – no sign of trouble here; juicy, fresh, currant on the palate, quite fleshy, fruity, then a somewhat abrupt, chewy finish. 88/100

Sandra and the team felt that that finish – “slightly acrid” as she put it – will become more evident as the wine ages. As many customers lay this wine down, they felt they could offer it under the estate label and at AU$75, so they declassified it and offer it for AU$15… and not for the first time. The 2007 went the same way. It’s easy to see that the de Pury’s are as loyal to Yeringberg’s customers as the customers are to Yeringberg. It’s the only way to protect a reputation, but what a cost! On the Maroondah Highway to my next appointment I saw Victoria State signs on the road warning of the potential for preventative controlled burn offs. Good for saving lives I thought, but something of a perennial hazard for grape growers waiting to harvest.

2008 Yeringberg estate red

AU$75 on the mailing list. A warm end-of-the-drought vintage.

Fine ruby; fine, beautifully fragrant Cabernet-led nose; lovely flesh and fragrance on the palate – quite perfumed, quite grippy and more surly on the finish. This seems to be beginning to shut down. A little bolder and riper than some of the classic Yeringberg vintages. Very good. 91/100

My introduction to Yeringberg’s estate red came via a full case of the 1990 that came up for auction in the UK. A really admired its succulent fruit and leafy coolness and elegance in spite of its happy bottled sunshine. I have one bottle left which I am now reminded to open – so will report on that soon…

My final journey for the day took me to the little town of Healesville and running early I stopped for a coffee. The Yarra Valley’s reach to deep-pocketed Melbournians enjoying their weekend was evident by the seeming over-supply of cafés along the high street, and an art gallery here and there, but there is still the strong impression of a rural supplies town about the place. “Menz-Cutz” hairdressers sits next to the Maroondah Panel Service offering “ride on mower sales”. AJ’s Bakery sits opposite the Cherry Tree Takeaway. And on the corner, the Grand Hotel. Growing up in New Zealand, and having stopped for a sandwich and milkshake in dozens of smallvilles just like this, I thought I had the measure of the place (not sneering, just saying!). That was, until the tractor beam picked me up and deposited me a few hundred metres down the road at Giant Steps / Innocent Bystander. Innocent bystander indeed. Here stands a monument to modern Australian life, draped in concrete slab, glass and timber, and a triple-height ceiling. Entering I’m transported right back to achingly cool Melbourne. Chet Baker’s voice fills the cavernous room with a vibe immediately reconfirmed by the sight of the wood-fired pizza oven glowing in the corner, and punters drinking coffee (in house roaster), wine, munching on tapas and the like.

I’m quickly minded by marketing co-ordinator Zoe Ottaway, bursting with natural and deserved pride in the whole thing. We’re joined by marketing guru Cameron McKenzie. The whole thing is amazingly slick – a word I’m loath to put to print here for all its pejorative connotations. For this whole venture feels as warm, heartfelt, genuine, and fun as I might have possibly imagined. (Have a look round the website for a sense of it). For a wine lover like me it’s like being a kid at Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. As our tasting begins I quickly book a seat at the bar for dinner lest I miss what is by now making my tummy rumble.

Halfway through the tasting, proprietor Phil Sexton arrives, and before we’ve finished I’m invited to join him, wife and kids for dinner. Simple but exquisite pizza, fresh shucked oysters, various tapas, and a pretty extraordinary duck pie were soon in front of me. If you drove out here just to eat you would feel rewarded.

Oh yes, and at the back of the restaurant stands the winery, behind a glass wall by the pizza oven. Spacious, with a modern gravity-flow design, it has all the bangs and whistles.

Phil Sexton, trim, fit, high energy and engaging, has quite a background. A master brewer by training, he is the man behind Red Back (THE beer, as I recall, when I backpacked around Australia 20 years ago), Little Creatures, as well as the Devil's Lair winery. Giant Steps is a nod to jazz great John Coltrane's 1960 solo album of that name, and perhaps analogous too to Phil's own giant (3,500km) step from success in WA, to new beginnings in VIC.

The wines - all in bottle - provided a solid line up – the peaks of which were as high as I experienced on this trip.

2011 Innocent Bystander Moscato

Smart wine in a very smart package – this is in clear bottles and halves, with a crown cap. 5.5% abv. It is also distributed on premise in pink kegs!

Just slightly pétillant, lightly and naturally pink; a musky fresh muscaty nose; crisp apple palate, Turkish Delight fragrance, crisp clean finish. Delicious. May I have some more? 88/100

2011 Innocent Bystander Pinot Gris

Yarra Valley fruit.

Fresh, low-key nose; crisp pears, an attractive combination of fresh crisp acidity and a little phenolic oiliness in the middle, finishes crisp and fresh. Good. 88/100

2011 Innocent Bystander Chardonnay

A crisp, leaner style, very fresh, verging on a bit austere I think. 86/100

2011 Innocent Bystander Gateway Vineyard Viognier

Subltey scented style, very fresh, a touch of apricot skin, a touch lean, fresh, crisp, quite delicious. 88/100

2011 Innocent Bystander Pinot Noir

Paleish; raspberry on the nose with some nutty oak notes, a little reduced; zippy, red fruit expression, quite slender in style, a touch if nutty oak and a little burnt match stick. This comes across as a cool leaner style of Pinot, fairly stylish and aromatic. Good. 89/100

2010 Innocent Bystander Syrah

From Yarra Valley and Pyrenees region fruit.

A really lovely fresh crushed fruit expression on the nose – lifted, fresh vibrant aromatics; crisp, fresh, juicily-styled syrah, lively and aromatic. Very nice! 89/100

2010 Innocent Bystander ‘Mule’ Shiraz

From Gateway Hill, McLaren Vale

If you want a syrah lesson in site – taste this side by side with the VIC version. Riper, bigger nose; fleshy ripe shiraz, powdery-fine tannins and a generous, though not jammy mouthfeel. Yummy. 87/100

2010 Giant Steps ‘Sexton Vineyard’ Chardonnay

Fine intense nose, serious and nutty; rich, intense fruit, concentrated, high energy here, real intensity without a sense of heaviness, some fine nutty oak on the finish. Super serious chardonnay. 94/100

2010 Giant Steps ‘Tarraford Vineyard’ Chardonnay

An earthier nose after the Sexton; quite citrus on the palate, full taut finish. Very fine. 93/100

2010 Giant Steps ‘Arthur’s Creek’ Chardonnay

Fine fresh nose with a beautifully floral edge; juicy, taut, lovely weight and texture, good flesh but this is tightly wrapped. Love it! For laying down. 95/100

2004 Giant Steps ‘Sexton Vineyard’ Chardonnay

Nutty nose; quite Meursault-like, finely textured chardonnay, citrusy, nutty, high quality. 90/100

2010 Giant Steps ‘Sexton Vineyard’ Pinot Noir

Light fresh colour; scented red cherry, a touch of leaf, a touch of spice, very fragrant, nothing seems out of place; lovely red cherry scented fruit, sapid acidity, very harmonious, fine long finish. Really seriously good Pinot. 94/100

2010 Giant Steps ‘Tarraford Vineyard’ Pinot Noir

A touch more colour than Sexton; darker fruit expression here, a touch of plum, spice, leaf; dark cherry fruit expression, quite sexy, scented with bright fresh acidity, some grip in the tannins here, this is firmer, broader, though still transparent Pinot, long scented finish. Very good. 92/100

2010 Giant Steps ‘Applejack Vineyard’ Pinot Noir

Fine pale-fresh appearance; Beaune-like red fruit on the nose, touch spice, quite aromatically complex; taut, juicy spine, good mid-palate texture, some stem notes, tightly wound and long. Very good – for the cellar for sure. 93/100

2010 Giant Steps ‘Gladysdale Vineyard’ Pinot Noir

A vibrant nose – open fruit, a touch of tamarillo about the fruit expression, some spicy medicinal notes; warm and spicy tone here, a generous style in the context of this line up, but still very finely made. 91/100

2010 Giant Steps ‘Sexton Vineyard’ Merlot

Fine plummy nose, ripe, fleshy; juicy fresh and fleshy on the palate. Some savouriness. Juicy and appealing. 87/100

2010 Giant Steps ‘Harry’s Monster’

72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Petit Verdot, 13% Merlot

Dark fruit, quite fragrant, leafy complexity and notes of dark olives on the nose; juicy dark fruit, after the other wines this feels distinctly bold, punchy, yet seemingly well-balanced for now quite backward wine. Plenty of complexity and sits well in the glass, it will be interesting to see how this develops. 90+/100?

Phil and his team clearly know what they’re doing and have a feel for texturally-driven coolly expressed chardonnay and pinot in particular. One or two of the wines seemed to be nudging out toward the too-lean style in fashion right now, but the stars of the show – for me the Sexton Vineyard Chardonnay and Pinot, the Arthur’s Creek Chardonnay and Applejack Pinot – are amongst the best wines of these varieties I have tasted from Australia. That, some fresh shucked oysters, and a slab of grilled moo, and you wouldn’t do wrong paying them a visit.

By the time we sat down for dinner it was absolutely tipping down outside, the room illuminated by flashes of lightening. On the way back to my little hotel in East Melbourne I felt a sense of relief the grape growers – that perhaps the chance of a bush fire – or controlled burn off – might be delayed a few more days now.

Tomorrow, Mornington Peninsula…