Mornington Peninsula: Piers and Pinots

Sunday 11 March 2012
12noon – 3pm, $25

• 20 wineries at Flinders foreshore
• Taste Pinots, local food producers, live music
• Includes wine tastings, notes, Riedel tasting glass



Sunday 11 March 2012 at Flinders Foreshore from 12 – 3pm Mornington Peninsula is uniquely situated with 3 breezes delivered via Port Phillip Bay, Westernport and Bass Strait. The effect creates ideal conditions for the region's pinots - wines with outstanding flavors, balanced natural acidity and fine tannins.

Twenty one Mornington Peninsula Pinot producers will be down by the sea at our annual Labour Day weekend showcase. Taste a range of Pinots along with local fine food and music.

A wonderful range of wines will be available to taste - or buy a glass to enjoy along with a seaside lunch to remember. Also don’t miss the annual Piers & Pinots Yacht Race which will be held on the day.

This year tickets can be purchased online and those intending to come are encouraged to book prior to the event as numbers have been steadily increasing each year and numbers will be limited to a comfortable size. $25 per head includes complimentary tasting glass & wine tastings. (Follow the flags & Overflow parking at Flinders Golf Club)

Bluestone Lane Even Keel Yal Yal Estate Willow Creek Vineyard Box Stallion Stonier Wines The Duke Vineyard Balnarring Vineyard – Quealy Montalto Yabby Lake The Cups Estate Moorooduc Estate Rahona Valley Prancing Horse Estate Dromana Estate Miceli Darling Park Winery Crittenden Estate Lindenderry Elgee Park Baillieu Underground

Please download a booking form here now

Tertini Wines Leads The Way

Media Release

Southern Highlands producer, Tertini Wines, has started 2012 in spectacular fashion with a swag of trophies and medals at the South Coast Wine Show.

Pinot Noir 2009

The recently released 2009 Pinot Noir proved to be the star of the 2012 South Coast Wine Show for Tertini, winning a Gold Medal and Trophies for Best Pinot Noir, Best Red Wine of the Show and Best Wine from the Southern Highlands Region.

The 2008 Tertini Riesling continued the winery’s extraordinary track record with this grape variety by winning a Gold medal and Trophy for the Best Riesling. This Riesling has now won 9 Gold medals including at the International Riesling Challenge.

The 2009 Tertini Reserve Noble Riesling also seems to be destined for further show success, winning a Gold medal at its very first wine show!

Tertini Wines Sales Manager, Robert Kay, explains “We are absolutely delighted.

The judges at this wine show are highly respected, with plenty of national and international experience. The Chief Judge emphasised in his summation that three of the wines, including the 2009 Tertini Pinot Noir and 2008 Tertini Riesling, are truly world class.”

“Only 6 Gold medals were awarded across 19 Classes,” Mr Kay explained, “and Tertini Wines received three of them.”

2011 Tertini Pinot Gris

The 2009 Tertini Pinot Noir has won four Gold medals in recent months including at the 2011 National Wine Show, Australia’s only best-of-the-best wine show where a wine has to win gold or silver at another major wine show to be eligible to enter.

Like Riesling, Pinot Noir is a variety that is well suited to the cool climate of the Southern Highlands and it seems to be doing particularly well at Tertini’s “Yaraandoo” vineyard near Berrima.

Mr Kay further explained; “Pinot Noir is a challenging variety that is very sensitive to climate, soils and vine age so it is particularly pleasing to see these results from such young vines. The success points to a great future for Pinot Noir from “Yaraandoo” and the rest of the Southern Highlands Region.”

Mr Kay said “We are committed to producing the best quality fruit possible at “Yaraandoo”, with hand pruning, regular soil testing, careful canopy management, low cropping and hand picking”.

“Then we hand over the fruit to our winemaker, Jonathan Holgate, with the expectation that he will craft an award-winning wine, which he has done brilliantly and consistently”.

In all, the small range of Tertini Wines, which includes Riesling, Arneis, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Nebbiolo and Cabernet has won over 240 trophies and medals at regional, national and international wine shows since the first vintage in 2005. The wines have also been named “Best in Class” on over 40 separate occasions.

www.tertiniwines.com.au

PINOT GRIS HITTING ITS STRAPS

Wc27Feb12

RESULT of a textbook
perfect vintage.

David Ellis

PINOT Gris appears to be really hitting its straps of late, not just here but internationally, particularly amongst female drinkers who enjoy its slightly more fruit-forward characters either for social sipping or with a variety of food choices.

And interestingly California is now the world's biggest maker of Pinot Gris, overtaking its home-town France (and Italy where its known as Pinot Grigio,) while Australian growers are also planting more of the variety, as are many in New Zealand.

One particularly enjoyable New Zealand Pinot Gris is from Essenze in Waipara on the South Island where the 2011 vintage was one of almost textbook perfection: their resultant wine that's just been released here is one with ripe fruit flavours of peach, pear and with citrus touches, and a touch of minerality.

Chief Winemaker, Corey Ryan and young-gun off-sider, Gwyn Olsen can be justifiably proud of this one, and to enjoy it (at a well-priced $19.99) to its best at the table, they suggest matching with roast chicken over shiitake mushroom and goat's curd fettuccine.

TRY this one with Vietnamese
barbecued pork fillet.

ONE FOR LUNCH: RYMILL in South Australia's Coonawarra have released their first-ever Gewurztraminer, and it makes you wonder why they've waited so long to show their skills at making this perfumed, sweeter-style wine – and which in this case is made in more dryer-than-usual mode.

Senior Winemaker, Sandrine Gimon crafted the 2011 Rymill Coonawarra gt (for Gewurztraminer) as part of the company's "Coonawarra Foodies" range of wines. And she certainly achieved her goal of a wine that's traditionally crisp and luscious, and ideal to partner with a myriad food options, in particular most spicy Asian dishes (think along the lines of Vietnamese barbecued pork fillet,) duck, or chicken or pork stir-fries.    

Nicely priced at $19.95 for adventurous foodies.

(NEED A FOOD/DRINK IDEA? Check out  http://www.vintnews.com )

Meet the Glandore Team at NSW Wine Festival - Sydney Cellar Door

Join us at the NSW Wine Festival

Sydney Cellar Door

Sat 25th & Sun 26th Feb

NSW Wine Festival's Sydney Cellar Door is Sydney's biggest outdoor food and wine event. It will be held this coming weekend Saturday the 25th & Sunday the 26th February 11am-6pm in Hyde Park South with the largest gathering of NSW Winemakers in one place anywhere.

The whole Glandore team will be on hand at the event. So come on by for a few glasses of Glandore wine and catch up with Duane, Matt and our new Cellar Door Manager Ashleigh. We will be pouring our new Vintage wines including Blanc De Blanc, Savagnin, Blush Moscato, Canberra Shiraz, Hunter Shiraz, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. It looks like great weather for the weekend. Look forward to seeing you all there!

To avoid the rush on the day purchase your tasting token packages online so you can enjoy a fast and easy start to your day. For further information and to purchase your tasting token packages visit  www.nswwine.com.au 

Regional Victorian produce and wines showcased for AIME 2012 at PM24

by Roderick Eime | Traveloscopy.com

Each year the world's conference and incentive buyers descend on Melbourne for the massive meetings and events expo, AIME.

This year the hosts (MCEC and MCVB (aka 'The Bureau')), treated media to a scintillating 10-course degustation dinner at PM24, where acclaimed French chef, Philippe Mouchel, is in residence. The Press Club Group restaurant opened to much fanfare in December 2010 and has become an instant sensation.

Philippe Mouchel welcomes his media guests

George Calombaris, at the helm of the Press Club Group’s success said at the time, “Philippe is a culinary legend… his passion and knowledge for food is amazing, I’m so happy he has joined us.” 

Along with intricate descriptions of each hand-crafted course from Philippe, head sommelier Tim Stow took us on a tantalising tour of his wine list and showcased some selections for the night's edible extravaganza.

Here is the special menu. (Read it and weep!) and Tim's showcase selection:

• Dominique Portet Sparkling Rose NV – Yarra Valley
• Bannockburn Sauvignon Blanc 2011 – Geelong
• Sorrenberg Chardonnay 2010 – Beechworth
• Williams Crossing Pinot Noir 2010 – Macedon
• Yeringberg Cabernet 2008 – Yarra Valley
• Bests Late Harvest Muscat 2010 – Great Western

I confess to being finicky with white wines, but both the Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc were superb. The Sorrenberg, in particular, having a rare creamy character not found in most wines of this type. The Williams Crossing pinot noir certainly reinforced the Macedon region's growing notoriety for cool climate excellence.

Tim has been with Philippe since the opening when the pair came over from the Brasserie by Philippe Mouchel at Crown Casino.

Despite travelling widely to such locales as Epernay, Reims, Bordeaux, Burgundy and Basque, Tim is unashamedly a Geelong boy who is quite upfront about his preference for local produce.

"I like to spend time at the wineries during vintage and I was at Paradise IV in Batesford and Curly Flat in Macedon recently. I like to see firsthand the character and craftsmanship of our regional wines."

New Cumulus wines

Media Release:

WINES TO TAKE YOU TO CLOUD 09 AND 10!

As a Major Sponsor of the 2012 NSW Wine Festival, Cumulus Estate Wines is a fierce believer in the quality of wines from NSW and in particular those produced from the high elevation, ancient volcanic soils of Mount Canobolas in Orange.

Committed to enhancing the reputation of the wines from Orange, NSW's premier cool climate region, it is very timely that Cumulus can coincide the start of the NSW Wine Festival (25 Feb – 31 March 2012) with the release of the new vintages from their reserve range of wines, the...

2009 Cumulus Shiraz (RRP $30)

2010 Cumulus Chardonnay (RRP $30)

In 2008, Block 23 (with its deep clay loam threaded with quartz and shale, sitting above 605m elevation) produced shiraz of such quality it made a wine voted one of the Top 10 Shiraz in the world at the 2011 Syrah du Monde. The 2009 vintage followed suit and winemaker Debbie Lauritz again selected this block as the best in the company's 508ha vineyard. However, wanting to strive for something a little extra she also blended in 10% from Block 51 (with its distinctive terra rossa soil) which "really seemed to add an authentic brightness to the wine," said Debbie. "We also included some whole bunch components which worked really well and increased the texture and funky elements in the wine."

Debbie continues, "The 2010 Cumulus Chardonnay again comes from Blocks 14B and 15. The harsh soil conditions here consistently produce strong vines with extra character and the basalt-derived loam with quart and shale in Bock 15 creates intriguing mineral characteristics in the fruit.  We did experiment a little in the winery though, using more natural fermentation, a little less malo and refined oak use."

Following gentle whole bunch pressing the majority of free-run juice was barrel fermented in a combination of new and aged oak barriques. A few selected parcels were placed in larger puncheons and "The Egg" fermenter (an oval, concrete fermenter which follows biodynamic principles), using a combination of cultured and wild yeasts. Debbie adds, "We are continually evolving our use of oak, each year selecting the best coopers, barrels, toasting levels and wood types to suit our wines. For the 2010 we matured the wine for 12 months in a mix of French and Hungarian oak. Whilst drinking well now, I'm confident that this wine will continue to develop into something really special over the next 5 years."

The Cumulus Shiraz 2009 and Cumulus Chardonnay 2010 will be the star attractions at the Cumulus Estate Wines stand at Sydney Cellar Door, part of the 2012 NSW Wine Festival. Join the Cumulus team in Hyde Park South, Sydney on Saturday 25 or Sunday 26 February to taste these great wines, alongside the Rolling and Climbing ranges.

Cumulus Estate Wines prides themselves on their sustainable approach in the vineyard, and all the fruit used for these wines is grown with the long-term view of producing healthy, balanced vines with minimal intervention.

Cumulus Shiraz 2009 & Cumulus Chardonnay 2010 – both RRP $30

Stockists: Distributed by Cumulus Estate Wines; available nationally though independent liquor stores or buy direct via www.cumuluswines.com.au

Villa Maria remains on Gold Course at the Royal Easter Show Wine Awards

Villa Maria Estate picked up 11 gold and 17 silver medals at the 59th Royal Easter Show Wine Awards, continuing its 2011 winning strike in 2012.

The Royal Easter Show Wine Awards are New Zealand’s oldest and longest running national wine competition with over 1200 wines entered into the 59th season.

Commenting on another excellent award success for Villa Maria, Sir George Fistonich, owner and managing director says: “Our Chardonnays continue to win over the judges taking out a quarter of all Chardonnay Gold medals in this year’s show.”

2012 Royal Easter Show trophy winners will be announced at the official awards dinner on 17 March 2012.


Villa Maria Estate’s gold medals:

Villa Maria Single Vineyard Ihumatao Chardonnay 2010
Villa Maria Single Vineyard Keltern Chardonnay 2008
Villa Maria Single Vineyard Ihumatao Gewurztraminer 2010
Villa Maria Single Vineyard Southern Clays Sauvignon Blanc 2011
Villa Maria Reserve Gimblett Gravels Hawkes Bay Merlot 2010
Villa Maria Reserve Barrique Gisborne Chardonnay 2010
Villa Maria Reserve Hawkes Bay Chardonnay 2010
Villa Maria Reserve Hawkes Bay Merlot 2009
Villa Maria Reserve Hawkes Bay Syrah 2010
Villa Maria Cellar Selection Marlborough Pinot Noir 2010
Villa Maria Cellar Selection Marlborough Dry Riesling 2011


About Villa Maria

Villa Maria has been New Zealand’s most awarded winery for 30 years. Founded by George Fistonich in 1961 and still privately owned today, Villa Maria is one of the great wine companies of the world. Sourced from expertly managed wineries in the best growing regions of New Zealand, the Villa Maria Estate range is enjoyed in over 50 countries worldwide.

With a strong sustainability focus and absolute commitment to quality, Villa Maria has won critical acclaim for its ability to “express individual winemakers’ flair” with the stamp of a “perfectionist’s zeal” and to create “beautifully crafted” wines of “supernatural consistency”.

The Villa Maria Estate range includes: Private Bin, Cellar Selection, Reserve, and Single Vineyard wines.

Visit www.villamaria.co.nz for more information.