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This is a very affordable Pinot from the highly regarded Tarrawarra winery with fruit sourced from the estate and the hills of southern NSW. A well made Pinot with good fruit depth and varietal flavour.

Fruit for this wine was hand sorted twice & produced in two ways; one fermenter of whole berries & another of 100% whole bunches. Blended together. Matured in 300-litre hogsheads (roughly 20% new, François Frères). Ten months on lees before bottling, unfiltered. A graceful & savoury expression of Mornington Pinot Noir. Red plum, spice & dark cherry characters. Fine, supporting tannins. A lingering, perfumed finish of amaro spice.

Montalto's 2018 Pennon Hill Pinot Noir has delicious aromas of red currants, blueberry, sour cherry, cranberry and dried strawberry combine with florals, dried herbs, spice, and earthy forest-floor qualities. On the palate, generous juicy red fruits meld with bramble and earth. The warmer 2018 season lent itself to increasing the amount of Montalto-style whole-bunch fermentation; this technique involves loading whole bunches into a 2T open-fermenter and allowing them to undergo 10 to 14 days of carbonic maceration before being destemmed into 2 tonne open fermenters where primary wild fermentation is completed. The result is a significant increase in aromatics and savoury complexity. In 2018, 21% of the blend was made using this technique. The remaining portion of fruit is sorted on the table, destemmed and then allowed to soak on skins until the onset of wild fermentation. Ferment temperatures peaked at 32 degrees Celsius. At the completion of primary fermentation, the grapes were pressed and the wine transferred to French oak barriques and Puncheons (19% new) for natural malo-lactic fermentation. Barrel maturation was for 9 months followed by bottling. Chief winemaker Simon Black and the award-winning winemaking team at Montalto, manage the production of the three ranges in the Montalto stable of wine. Their focus is to create wines of exemplary quality and character, utilising winemaking techniques that complement the unique qualities derived from their vineyards, in a style that reflects each vineyard site. Montaltos three wine labels Pennon Hill, Montalto Estate and the Single Vineyard range are drawn from five different vineyards across the Mornington Peninsula. Montalto winemaker Simon Black explains how the wines relate: To use an analogy, the Single Vineyard wines are like the principal soloists in an orchestra; each is unique in their offering. Years of innovative trial work in the winery has given us the knowledge required to capture the hallmark qualities and personality from these sites. The Estate wines are more like the orchestra, where all the musicians come together to create a multilayered symphony. These wines are crafted from our best parcels of fruit from our vineyards across the Peninsula. The Pennon Hill wines are all about drinkability. They showcase all the qualities that the Mornington Peninsula is best known for perfume, purity, varietal expression and brightness.

Fruit for this wine was hand-selected from our single-site Yarra Valley vineyard. The wine was aged in both seasoned French barriques and state of the art stainless steel tanks for four months. Pale straw in colour, notes of green apple and citrus with hints of blossom. The palate is generous with firm acidity.

This Yarra Valley estate grown Pinot enjoys the complexity of six different clones of Pinot Noir originating from Europe, America and Australia. A selection of the best barrels, were put to one side to blend a complex and fulfilling wine. The perfume of spices and black cherries with earthy characters jump from the glass. The palate is voluptuous, and light as it should be, the fresh acidity of the grapes creates a vibrant fruitiness on the finish.

Bright ruby red appearance with a lovely crimson hue. Lovely nose, highly perfumed wine with red cherry, five spice savoury and floral notes dominating the aromas. The palate has a core of red fruit flavours around a backbone of natural acid. The mouthfeel is lithe and energetic with slinky fine tannins and a clean, fruit-driven finish. A wine made for immediate consumption that will improve with careful cellaring over the medium term.

Mac has a long history in Yarra Valley, starting out at Mount Mary before honing his skills in Burgundy and then returning back to the Yarra to start his own project. The Mac Forbes villages range is a reflection of the incredible diversity of one of Australia’s premier wine regions, the Yarra Valley. Each one shows the terroir of the site, while being made with restraint and traditional winemaking techniques.

The bouquet displays vibrant characters of dark cherry and plum. Use of French oak adds further layers of complexity to the aromas. The wine has great presence, texture and length. The palate is long and finishes with powdery, yet persistent tannins. Ripe and powerful, a great Yarra valley Pinot Noir which will also reward careful cellaring.