Our unpretentious Pinot has a brilliantly lifted nose of satsuma, cranberry and cherry liqueur, leading to dried herbs and flowers with hints of mushroom and forest floor. The palate opens with sour cherries and fresh raspberries, followed by baked quince and feijoa with bramble-patch and potpourri in the background. It’s a super slurpy light-bodied wine with zingy acid lines and beautiful fine tannins.
Pinot Noir
Pinot is the grape variety responsible for some of the most intense wine snobbery on the planet. It’s supposed to be taken very seriously. It’s supposed to sit in the finest barrels in cellars with moody lighting for years before being released. It’s supposed to spawn expansive dialogues on the interplay of light and dark elements, brilliant bouquets harmonizing with brooding layers of earth and mushroom and ethereal, mysterious spices. But the Adelaide Hills are producing fruit with amazingly attractive characteristics right out of the gate, so we’ve put together a Pinot that’s still young, vibrant, fresh and delicious. It’s a wine that you can just drink and enjoy. This style of Pinot is becoming extremely popular, with the Adelaide Hills at the heart of the movement.
Vineyards
Piccadilly Valley
A small portion of fruit was sourced from a vineyard in the Piccadilly Valley sub-region of the Adelaide Hills growing the 777 Pinot clone. The cooler Piccadilly vineyard provided a bulwark against hot early Summer conditions, helping to preserve the heady aromatics and fresh red fruit flavours the 777 clone is renowned for.
Woodside
The majority of the fruit was sourced from a vineyard west of Woodside growing the 114/115 Pinot clone. The east-facing vineyard is well-protected from hot afternoon sun, making it ideal for growing 114/115 Pinot with its natural elegance and delicate flavours.
Winemaking
A portion of the hand-picked fruit from both vineyards was de-stemmed, crushed, and wild fermented on skins with minimal intervention for a short time before being basket pressed to old French oak. The free-run portions of these ferments were included in the final blend after 14 months maturation. A small amount of the Piccadilly fruit was kept as whole bunches and underwent a carbonic maceration ferment, producing a blending component rich in floral aromatics. A small percentage of whole bunches were included in the wild ferment of the remaining Woodside fruit to provide some extra texture and spice. This portion spent longer on skins before being pressed to old French oak for 13 months.
