Giant Steps Yarra Valley Chardonnay
Dominique Portet Fontaine Cabernet Sauvignon
Oakridge Vineyard Series Willowlake Chardonnay
David Bicknell is a Chardonnay perfectionist with a passion for terroir and contrasts in the characters of different vineyard sites. In the glass: Bright fine straw with a green hue. On the nose: Fabulous purity and lift with ripe, complex stonefruit combining with lees and struck match magic. On the palate: A complex funky monster! It shows tremendous depth and umami being satiny soft throughout with amazing refined power and balance and extraordinary length and persistence. Classy!
Vietti Moscato dAsti Cascinetta
Pale sunshine yellow color and slight frizzante, this Moscato d'Asti has intense aromas of peaches, rose petals and ginger. On the palate, it is delicately sweet and sparkling with balanced acidity, good complexity and a finish of fresh apricots. The grapes are selected from small vineyards located in Castiglione Tinella. The vineyards are planted with 4,500 vines per hectare, which are almost 40 years old. Only the best Moscato grapes with extended maturation are used for the Cascinetta. The grapes are crushed, pressed and naturally clarified. Must is kept without sulfites in a cold storage, at low temperature in order to naturally prevent fermentation. Before the bottling, we add yeast and temperature is increased to 12°-14° C. Alcoholic fermentation occurs in stainless steel pressured tanks to preserve natural CO2 from the fermentation. The fermentation is stopped at 5% Alc. by reducing the temperature. There is no malolactic fermentation to preserve acidity, varietal fruit character and freshness. The history of the Vietti winery traces its roots back to the 19th Century. Only at the beginning of the 20th century, however, did the Vietti name become a winery offering its own wines in bottle. From 1919 Patriarch Mario Vietti began making the first Vietti wines, selling most of the production in Italy. His most significant achievement was to transform the family farm, engaged in many fields, into a grape-growing and wine-producing business. Then, in 1952, Alfredo Currado (Luciana Viettis husband) continued to produce high quality wines from their own vineyards and purchased grapes. The Vietti winery grew to become one of the top-level producers in Piemonte and was one of the first wineries to export its products to the USA market. Alfredo was one of the first to select and vinify grapes from single vineyards (such as Brunate, Rocche and Villero). This was a radical concept at the time, but today virtually every vintner making Barolo and Barbaresco wines offers single vineyard or cru-designated wines. Alfredo is also called the father of Arneis as in 1967 he invested a lot of time to rediscover and understand this nearly-lost variety. Today Arneis is the most famous white wine from Roero area, north of Barolo. Setting such a fine example with Arneis, even fellow vintners as far away those on the west coast of the United States now are cultivating and producing Arneis!
Hickinbotham of Drom Strawberry Kiss Non-Vintage
A lovely sparkling wine made from fresh ripe strawberries with a fragrant bouquet of exactly that fresh ripe strawberries!Balance in sweetness and acidity, a great celebratory bubbles.
Toolangi Chardonnay
Toolangi is a state forest just outside Healesville that was devastated during Black Saturday. The excellent vineyards remain, and continue to produce wines of personality and place. The Chardonnay combines varietal characters of quince and crab apple with some delicious nutty oak nuances. Its great value.
Punt Road Cabernet Sauvignon
A typically elegant Yarra Cabernet. The nose shows cassis and blackberry aromas with subtle cedary oak and the palate has a silky mouthfeel with sweet berry flavours and a lovely lingering finish.
Yering Station Yarra Chardonnay
Yering Station's Yarra Chardonnay displays citrus and subtle cashew notes on the nose with soft minerality and freshness. The palate has great texture and roundness with linear acidity with wonderful length and precision.
Oakridge Wines Local Vineyard Series Willowlake Chardonnay
The aspiration of Oakridge LVS -- or Local Vineyard Series -- wines is to be outstanding expressions of single vineyards within the Yarra Valley. Local Vineyard Series wines enable wine lovers to compare and contrast the power of terroir and geography in winemaking. In essence, different grape varieties thrive in different soils, and Yarra Valley terroirs and altitudes vary widely. Oakridges expertise and understanding of the region allows viticulturists and winemakers to match a particular variety with a particular site -- with marvellous results. Almost all LVS wines are cellarworthy. The Willowlake Vineyard is just outside Gladysdale in Victorias Upper Yarra Valley. Planted in 1979 at an elevation 300 metres, the cool-grown Chardonnay here ranks with the regions very best. Add the skills of leading Chardonnay exponent David Bicknell and these hand-picked grapes become wines that express their variety and origin with consummate precision and flair.
Riorret Lusatia Park Pinot Noir
In the glass: Vibrant mid-red. On the nose: Sweet cherry and raspberry fruit with notes of stalk and spice - so beautifully perfumed. On the palate: Vibrant and fresh, supple and juicy with ripe cherry and plum varietals, subtle stalky complexity, warm earthy notes, nicely integrted vanillin oak and savoury persistence. A complete wine - powerful yet refined, complex and layered with full Pinot Noir charm on show.