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Excerpt from the
5th Edition - due out in 2011
MORNINGTON
PENINSULA
The Peninsula
lies directly due south of Melbourne, about one hour’s drive away. It is
composed of small boutique wineries which have grown up over the last
ten years to total a staggering 200 vineyards in the region and 50
cellar doors. Commercial
winemaking dates back to 1886 but died out until the late 1940s when a
small vineyard was planted in the Dromana area.
However it was
Baillieu Myer at Elgee Park in 1972 that really kicked off the modern
industry we now have on the Peninsula. Ian Hickinbotham is a local
winemaker who was instrumental in the development of the region and made
the first wine for Elgee Park in 1975. The Peninsula is influenced by
the sea (known as a maritime climate) and by the altitude (250m) of the
vineyards. The region is cool, wet and often windy blowing either from
the north and west across Port Phillip Bay or from the SE from Bass
Strait . In some vintages vines suffer from poor fruit set. Harvest is
late in the season, typically beginning in late March and finishing in
May. The coolest part of the region is in the Peninsula hinterlands
around Red Hill and Main Ridge area where acid adjustment is rare and
vines are planted on deep old volcanic soils. Warmer sites are to the
north around Moorooduc are on lighter sandier soils. On the positive
side the region is blessed with a long growing season and frost is rare.
The region has always been a popular weekend destination for Melbourne
residents and many holiday homes have grown into vineyards, cellar door,
restaurants and retreats.
REGIONAL STYLES
Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are the most popular styles, followed by
Shiraz and Pinot Gris. Blessed by a dry warm vintage Mornington
Peninsula Pinot Noir can be world-class, offering a lovely bright fruit
character and a silky palate. Chardonnay offers fresh crisp acidity and
an appealing oat-meal character from well-handled oak. Pinot Gris or
Grigio display classic minerality and pear. In recent vintages Shiraz
from the district is full of ripe black cherry, savoury and elegant,
forging a reputation as the best cool climate region in Australia for
this variety.
WINERIES
Many of the producers on the Peninsula are small and cellar doors have
very limited opening times. On a larger scale Stonier is an award
winning winery producing classic cool climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
Mike Symons is winemaker, taking over from the experienced Geraldine Mc
Faul who moved to Willow Creek. Mike continues her tradition of making
some outstanding wines especially the reserve, Windmill and KBS Pinot
Noir. Stonier’s is part of the Lion Nathan group. Each year they host a
public benchmark tasting of worldwide Pinot Noirs at their SIPNOT
tasting.
Under Geraldine’s
guidance Willow Creek, at Merricks North, continues to perform well with
their Tulum, WCV range and Benedictus, which is their top brand. This is
one of only a few producers in the region that can reliably make good
Cabernet Sauvignon. Willow Creek has a stylish cellar door and modern
restaurant called Salix, with views across the vineyards.
Kevin McCarthy has
built T’Gallant up since 1990 and specialise in Pinot Gris with some 15
hectares planted. Owned by Treasury Wine Estate T’Gallant make a
selection of different styles of Pinot Gris/Grigio. Kevin’s partner
Kathleen Quealy jumped ship in 2007 and started her own label and
produces two idiosyncratic wines called Pobblebonk and Rageous. Now the
range has grown to include a Friulano (the French Sauvignonasse) called
Senza Nome and wines under the Musk Creek Vineyard which is managed by
Quealy.
Dromana Estate is
well known for producing Italian red varieties, such as Barbera,
Nebbiolo and Dolcetto assembled from grapes grown in Heathcote. Whilst
using locally grown fruit from the Peninsula for Pinot Grigio and Arneis.
They also own David Traeger wines from Central Victoria.
Dr Richard McIntyre
at Moorooduc Estate produces a rich and complex Chardonnay driven by a
wild yeast fermentation and minimal, if any, filtration. Lindsay McCall
at Paringa Estate produces excellent Pinot Noir using a Lyre trellising
system in the vineyard. This divides the canopy into a U shape which
allows better airflow and light penetration assisting even ripening of
bunches, especially in the cool Red Hill district. He also produces one
of the region’s best Shiraz.
Yabby Lake produce
Burgundian styled Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, made by Tom Carson. They
also source fruit from their vineyard in Heathcote for Shiraz and
Grenache. In 2008 they opened a ‘cellar door’ in the Guangdong Province
in China and intend to open other sites in the vast country.
More focused on the
local scene, chef/brothers Michael and Tony Lee at Foxeys Hangout
provide an excellent weekend experience serving up delicious snacks with
their wines and allowing customers the opportunity to join in on the
sparkling wine disgorgement process.
Kooyong vineyard has
a strong restaurant following specialising in Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
Situated slightly towards the north the vineyard is warmer and dryer and
has light sandy clay soils. Sandro Mosele makes the wines for Kooyong
and also at Port Phillip Estate, both vineyards being owned by Giorgio
and Dianne Gjergja. The family built a new environmentally astute cellar
door complex with accommodation and restaurant in late 2009 at Red Hill
to serve both vineyards. In 2010 the building design won
the Sir Osborn McCutcheon
Award at the Victorian Architecture Awards.
Ten Minutes By
Tractor Wine Co draws its fruit from three vineyards, each located on
Main Ridge. They are “ten minutes by tractor” apart; so hence the quaint
name. Richard McIntyre and Martin Spedding
oversees the production of some seriously good wines including
McCutcheon Chardonnay and Pinot Noir as well as a flavoursome Pinot
Gris.
John and Wendy
Mitchell at Montalto have built up an extensive complex featuring a fine
dining restaurant, Piazza Café, olive grove, and a wet land walk for
after lunch. Their wines are well made and stylish.
One of the largest properties in the region
Red Hill Estate merged with the Hunter Valley’s Arrowfield Estate in
2006. Red Hill produce a range of well-priced, consistently good wines.
The top event held
on the Peninsula is the International Pinot Noir Celebration every two
years which brings together top Pinot producers from around the world.
____________________________________________________________________________
Read about fake wines and how to avoid becoming a
victim.
docs/Check list for avoiding a Fake Wines.pdf
The following
articles written by Clive Hartley appeared first in the
Australian Wine
Selector Magazine
You can view or download to read later the files below.
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