Ahhh the wonderfully reliable wine industry....another year of huge rains, mouldy fruit, minimal sunshine and lots and lots and lots of handpicking....La Nina we are cursing you!

Well, despite some challenging 'weather events', the cynicism ends here thankfully: 2012 went pretty smoothly here in Whitlands. I wouldn't quite go as far to call it #vintageofthedecade - as those lucky Yarra Valley vignerons have so called it, but all in all I would call it as a great result from a tricky season.

You are probably aware of the 11 or so inches of rain that swept over Victoria in late February - well this is La Nina in full swing. A similiar thing happened last year and we lost 80% of our vineyard to all kinds of disease. This year the rain was much earlier and didn't have the same negative effect. Don't get me wrong, its certainly not ideal but we were well prepared; In wet years an open canopy is crucial to allow air flow and sunlight penetration to the fruit. Andrew - our ever dedicated viticulturalist - had managed to do just that and by mid March we were on track for a great season.

More rain followed however and the cleverest mould of them all - Botrytis Cinera, set in. Botrytis is ugly; it spreads rapidly, cannot be prevented or controlled with any treatments and at instances above about about 5% leaves wine flat and brown. The only thing to is cut it out to prevent further infection. Luckily the cool nights in Whitlands (sometimes down to 5 degrees in summer) and good breezes kept it at bay and we managed to keep it under control.

We sell about 90% of the fruit to other companies and this year was no exception. We handpicked over 110 Tons over two weeks (to put that in perspective, one person can pick about 450kg per day), including the rows selected for our own wines. Phew!

So back to us - we picked Pinot Meunier, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir for our 2012 Vintage Sparkling. This is only the second time we've made this wine - and its a really exciting project for us. Every parcel is whole bunch pressed into barrels where it ferments with wild yeast. Half of those 22 barrels were allowed through MLF, and they will all sit on lees until spring. We'll use about three quarters of these in the final wine, and save the rest for future reserves. For all sparkling wine lovers, this is one to anticipate.

Still in tank is my little darling - the 2012 Pinot Meunier Rose. For those who have heard ramble on about how much I love Pinot Meunier, you can breathe relief: it's finally happening. Pinot Meunier is the dysfunctional yet delicious cousin to the elegant and effortless Pinot Noir. This is a dry, textural, juicy rose which will hit shelves in a few months. I'll keep you posted with release dates and tasting notes. In addition to this, we finally have something to replace the long-sold-out 2010 Pinot Gris - the 2012 is fresh, light and very, very drinkable. Mmmmm just thinking about it makes me thirsty...

So all in all not a bad season, I know many, many vineyards who had no such luck - so we are all feeling quite lucky.

Cheers! Clare

 

 

Dear All!

For those who loved Young Bunch and are sad to see we are not entertaining your gorgeous selves this Melbourne Food and Wine Fest - Behold! This year there is something bigger and grander and even more fun: Bikini and the Bear.

As part of the MFWF 2012, the Young Bloods of Rutherglen have invited six cool climate Victorian winemakers to co-host a fabulous Bikini and the Bear themed wine party. Bikini - for warm climate, versus bear for cool climate. Get it? Genius.

The Young Bloods of Rutherglen comprise of Anderson Wines, Campbells, Cofields, Pfeiffer, Scion and Stanton and Killeen. These guys have audaciously challenged us cool climate producers - Brown Brothers, Castanga, Dalzotto, Ergo Sum & Fowles for the top spot on the night - let the showdown begin.

We are each pouring two wines each and party makers Bright Young Things will work their magic in the kitchen.Thats 24 wines and some amazing food - all for $85. Sweeeet!

Book your tickets early!

For bookings call 1300 787 929 or visit www.winemakers.com.au

*Just in case anyone was wondering - thats me in the brown bear suit. 

 

 

Fog and morning sun on the Whitlands High Plateau

 As far as wine regions are concerned, Whitlands barely exists.

Your mobile phone will not work, there are no signs, no post office, no shop and most concerning of all: no pub. The inconspicuous 'Burders Lane' street sign is on a blind corner and it's almost a guaranteed that you will drive straight past it. Most conversations end with "if you get to Mansfield you've gone to far". And when you get lost, you can't google map it - you have to do the old 'stop in at the next house' trick.

Which means that by the time you actually make to the farm - for whatever reason, you've generally got a decent story up your sleeve about how the neighbor down the road answered the door wearing only socks. Or perhaps you were offered scones and tea - either way - it's clearly win-win.

Whitlands isn't even an official region. Nope - we are part of the King Valley 'Geographic Indication' (GI); a classified subzone. And, in the 10 minutes it takes to drive from one end to the other, you probably won't even see any grapevines. So what is my point? My point is two things: Despite the fact that you've probably never heard of Whitlands before now, and will most likely never go there - and even if you do you might not even realise it, the Whitlands High Plateau grows some seriously good grapes.

Case en point: Brown Brothers won the Best Sparkling of Show Trophy at this years Royal Melbourne Wine Show for their Patricia Sparkling - made exclusively from grapes grown on their Whitlands Vineyard. Exciting stuff for a place with no sign.  Domaine Chandon, Yalumba and Neil Prentice all source grapes from Whitlands for sparkling and table wine - yet chances are, you'll never see it on a label.

My second point is how wonderful it is to be in a place with no cameras, no signs and no bloody billboards. I think myself the luckiest person alive when I leave Melbourne once a week and head for the beautiful hills and freshest of air. It's remote, cold, and my phone only works when I stand a specific distance from the front fence - but I wouldn't trade it for anything.

For those of you who were awesome enough to vote for our wines at the last Federation Square showcase, you'd be happy know that we took out both gongs for the 'Peoples Choice Awards' - for the 2008 Le Peche Mignon Pinot and 2009 Chardonnay.

A huge honor - I'm happy to say I'd rather win the peoples choice than gold medals any day!

As such we have been invited back the play with the big boys - the finals are this week - Wednesday the 3rd and Thursday the 4th of August. So not only we will be there, but all of the other wineries who won medals and awards - which means you get to taste the cream of the Victorian crop for a mere $25.

Tastings begin at 4:30 pm both days and run until 8pm - we'd love to see you all there!
For details visit http://www.fedsquare.com/events/wine-showcase/

Cheers!
Clare

Blogging is almost unfashionable these days, no?

Well I have been instructed by various over-charging experts and well-meaning consumers that blogging is important in the quest to develop any online presence.

Which is all good, but that has nothing to do with why I've chosen to put my blog on the Eminence website. 

Wine and the wine industry has always been the thing I keep coming back to, but there are aspects to the industry that I absolutely loathe. Wine-wank and the art of taking-one-selves-way-too-seriously tops my list and so with this little blog I hope to share with you all of the things I love about wine, wine drinking, wine making, wine education, wine selling and wine buying, without all of the brouhaha.

Most likely there will also be plenty of stuff about cooking, charcuterie, wine books, hopefully some Eminence updates and probably a few posts about how much I love Gin.

And for the momenet, i'd like to introduce you to our three most wonderful cows - who wander around all day making us look good. 

 

So stay tuned!
Cheers!
Clare