I’ve only tasted pretty high octaine wines from Australia. Am I overlooking some more Burgundian producers?
Luke Lambert. Nebbiolo/Syrah
William Downey Pinot
Farr Vineyards Pinot
The Yarra Valley has some nice stuff.
Best, Jim
Some of the ones that seem oaky and jammy become quite elegant with a few years on them. Some of them become worse. Just had a Massena 11th Hour 2004, not as good as the 2002, it’s now quite elegant and balanced but also rich and delicious, far beyond the three or so bottles I had shortly after release. I have had this experience many times.
Some are elegant right out of the box. Cullen, Hill of Grace. Cabs from Coonawarra, shiraz from McLaren Vale, several wines from Western Australia like Moss Wood and Leeuwin. SOme Victoria wines appeal.
My short answer would be, while I like many Barossa wines, just avoid them if your main concern is jammy oaky high octane.
You mentioned Burgundian. I’ve had some good Australian pinot that I liked, but not one of them would I seek out again. New Zealand is far more interesting for pinot.
Yarra Valley and Margaret Valley
Hunter Valley semillon fits the bill.
Margaret River, Leeuwin estate art series is fairly easy to get.
Tasmania, had some good PNs from there.
If you want elegant you can try some of the cooler climate wineries (Clonakilla, Mount Langi, Dalwhinnie, Mount Mary, Yarra Yering) or Hunter Valley which tends to be a bit more structured and earthy, (Brokenwood, Meerea Park, Lakes Folly (Cabernet), Mt Pleasant)
Coonawarra for classic CabSav (Wynns, Balnaves etc) for Pinot (By Farr, Kooyong Estate, William Downie, Bass Phillip).
The big exporters will tend to make their wines to suit what’s selling, and the problem is that people in the US and UK keep on buying the big fruit forward styles so they’d be crazy to bite the hand that feeds them. A lot of winemakers went through a period where it was all the rage but are now trying to wind down the wick and go back to their pre-Parker styles of more elegant wines with alc around 12.5-14.5% instead of 15-16.5% but most of these are not exported overseas.
Principia “Foris” Pinot Noir 2008
Mornington Peninsula, VIC
This was really light and beautiful (got it at Wineodyssely in Sydney). If you find some, let me know–very small producer.
Keep them coming. I’m taking notes and will go on the hunt.
Some of the ones that seem oaky and jammy become quite elegant with a few years on them. Some of them become worse.
Yep. It’s something that is rather surprising but some that I thought were nearly undrinkable oak bombs became pretty good, contrary to all my expectations.
Luke Lambert does a single vineyard from a steep hill in Yarra Valley. Also try Vasse Felix, Moss Wood, and Pierro, all from Margaret River, Flametree from Frankland River, Dalwhinnie from the Pyrenees, and Balnaves from Coonawarra. And I’d also look at Reynella from McLaren Vale - ripe but nonetheless elegant at the same time, and the wines done by John Duval, as well as stuff like Tscharke ‘Girl Talk’ from Barossa - they’re actually making Savagnin! And Albarino! And try St. Henri from Penfolds.
I wouldn’t call any of them “Burgundian”, but they’re not hi-octane either.
- 1 on the Margaret River and Leeuwin wines. There are a few Two Hands wines with age that are elegant. Trevor Jones used to be but I’m not sure if they are still in business. Older Branson Coach wines are elegant now, but still need some time.
For Burgundian style wines you will want to look to the Macedon Ranges, and specifically at Curly Flat wines.
In head to head taste tests, I have watched avowed CA Pinot fans and French Pinot fans choose Curly Flat. While to each his own, the wine they make is well worth pouring.
Craig, the short answer is certainly yes.
Whilst I don’t know exactly what you mean by “Burgundian”, I would guess you mean producers that value savoury flavours over pure fruit. If that’s the case, Australia has many indeed.
The recommendations above are good, but would see you looking for wines from wildly diverse regions, (and you’d probably still be stumbling across big, fruity wines). Instead of giving you a list of wineries to hunt down, I would recommend seeking out wines from the regions of Gippsland, Yarra Valley, Geelong and Macedon, (all Victoria). These will all be Pinot Noir and aromatic Shiraz producers. Cross check the names that come up with viticultural & winemaking practices and you’ll find a huge list of names that would fit your “Burgundian” goals.
Cheers, David.
It’s a good idea David. The problem is that sometimes it’s hard to find the wines mentioned in this thread. First, a lot are small production numbers anyway, and second, the big guys really do dominate the market. It would be great if retail shops would have sections like Geelong and Macedon in the way they have the Loire and Bordeaux. But instead they have “Australia”! Same thing with Spain though.
yum yum YUM
I must force myself to let the ’05, '06, '08 and ’09 I have in the cellar reach at least a decade of age. In the meantime, they are all drinking very well with power and elegance. Just delicious juice that expresses the terroir and the climate like a bell, well struck. Hard to find in the US, though.
Yes, 2010 in Otago would be my recommendation.
Mornington Peninsula are making some great wines, as a subsection with Yarra Valley in the Victoria area.
Kooyong, Will Downie and Yarra Yerring are my favourite, but also Mac Forbes is making some good stuff as well.
First Post here! I returned from a 2 week trip in Victoria and South Australia tasting extensively. There has been a sea-change in winemaking in the past several years and if you find the right producers you will be astonished!!
Victorian Favourites- (English spelling intended)
Bindi- for intense, dense mineral Chardonnays
Oak Ridge Chardonnays- 12.5- 13% very dense, lean Chablis style.
Oak Ridge Cabs- wonderfully elegant, fine and lean
Pinots from- Kooyong (ferrous is incredibly bright, tense and mineral)
Luke Lambert’s Syrah- 2010, beautifully crunchy fruit characters, cool and savoury. Nothing overblown, just great balance and finesse.
Mac Forbes Yarra Valley Pinot Noir- 2010, high toned, elegant, fresh and bright.
Timo Mayer’s Close Planted Pinot Noir 2010 (and yes the label is a hommage to Rousseau but the wine is extraordinarily funky, complex and tight) one of the best New World Pinot’s I have ever tasted. Astonishing…
South Australia-
Yangarra Grenache 2011- this might sound crazy but the cold and wet of 2011 vintage produced some deliciously gentle and subtle wines. This was a real standout wine for me.
Battle of Bosworth- Puritan Shiraz (I think it was 2012) super clean, floral, fresh, unoaked and delicious. High toned fruit driven but juicy. You would never in a million years put get this blind as Mclaren Vale Shiraz…
I could go on!
Marcus
ITB but no commercial ties to any of the wines above
I had lunch at Oakridge on Monday. Very nice restaurant. At the cellar door I did a tasting of all their wines. The chardonnays have improved significantly in the past decade and especially so in the past 4-5 years. Very tight and focussed wines from their reserve block 864.