Scorpo Bestia Pinot Grigio on Skins
Attractive coppery pink in the glass. The nose has notes of musk, candied orange peel, fresh blood orange, sour cherry, fresh herbs and a slight Campari twist. Bitter-edged on the palate with that blood orange note, with musky pear, peach and strawberry fruit. It has a soft phenolic texture along with zesty tannins that add a pleasant grip. Finishes dry, clean and tangy. Engaging and moreish, with impressive finesse for this style of wine, and with a good volume of fresh fruit to balance the phenolic and savoury skinsy elements.
Garagiste Mornington Peninsula Chardonnay
Hand harvested, hand sorted & whole bunch pressed. Natural fermentation is on high solids with partial malolactic. Barrel fermented in 500-litre puncheons (20% new François Frères), the wine is matured on lees for 10 months before bottling.A bright & punchy Chardonnay; Lemon & grapefruit citrus. Sherbert. Spicy oak. slight lees funkiness. A good lengthy finish.
Onannon Mornington Chardonnay
Good flesh here though; medium-bodied, good weight and sweep of acidity with a crispness to the finish 95, 96 clone Chardonnay from two vineyards, one in Red Hill and one in Tuerong. Barrel ferment, lees stirred. 20% MLF. 15% new French oak. 10 months in the barrel. Sam, Kaspar and Will pick the fruit on the up-curve (i.e. crux of flavour and freshness) bearing in mind the warmer side of the Mornington Peninsula is part of the equation here.
Garagiste Le Stagiaire Mornington Peninsula Chardonnay
Le Stagiaire Chardonnay is drawn mostly from Garagistes Merricks vineyard, with the balance coming from Balnarring and Tuerong. Barney Flanders doesn't make these wines specifically for this labelall his ferments start out as potential single-vineyard wines, so the single-site wines are barrel selections, with the remaining wines bottled under Le Stagiaire. This provides some idea of how this label is able over-deliver, year in year out.
Hickinbotham of Drom Sparkling Pinot Chardonnay
Lovely light bead, gently bottle carbonated by the French method which means hand riddling and disgorging to remove the yeast from the bottle. Not too acidic and lovely fruit on the palate.
Denton Shed Chardonnay
Sourced from the cooler North Eastern slope of the Denton View Hill. Whole bunch pressed, wild ferment, wild malo. Matured in French oak and stainless steel tank for 5 months and early bottling in Spring without fining or filtration.
Quealy Friulano
Quealy were the first Aussie winemakers to produce a Friulano, a grape variety that hails from Friuli in north eastern Italy. A wine of interest with masses of flavour.Vibrant lemon green. Expressive and powerful nose of ripe melon, cashew and marzipan. Rich and ripe with lashings of stonefruit and citrus, complex nutty complexity, slatey minerality, supple textural notes and a long, savoury finish.
Animale Chardonnay
Quealy Lina Lool
This is named after the aromatic compounds stored in the skins of Moscato Giallo. This is a blend of Friulano (45%), Riesling (26%), Moscato Giallo (19%) and Malvasia Istriana (7%), all from Quealys Balnarring home block. The grapes were added to a rolling ferment (as they were harvested) to open-top amphorae, and the wine spent six months on skins. It was then basket-pressed, roughly settled and allowed to mature in old French puncheons before being bottled 12 months later.
The Coldstream Guard Chardonnay
Many feel that the 2021 vintage in the Yarra Valley was one of the best in recent memory, and with wines like this delicious Chardonnay it's easy to see why.Bright mid yellow. Oyster shell and wet rock over white peach and grapefruit. Vibrant and intense with a crisp citrus and stonefruit core, supported by subtle toasty oak. Shows latent development potential with nutty complexity and attractive minerality.