Good Wine Hunting

National Liquor News - December 2004

Semillon and Shiraz have proved to be the grape varieties most suited to the often difficult soil and climatic conditions of the Hunter Valley. Alongside these, some distinctive Chardonnay, Verdelho and a new generation of boutique wines await discovery. 2004 has been a good year for the region’s winemakers, judging by the awards and accolades they have received. Tyrrell’s chief winemaker Andrew Spinaze was named Winemaker of the Year in the Qantas/Gourmet Traveller Wine competition. Brokenwood did Australia proud at the Decanter World Wine Awards in London, its 2003 Semillon taking out the trophy for Best International Varietal White Wine Under £10. McWilliam’s 2000 Mount Pleasant Maurice O’Shea Shiraz, which retails for around $40, outscored Penfolds Grange and Henschke Hill of Grace to become the highest rating Shiraz in James Halliday’s Australian Wine Companion 2005. And shortly before 2004 even got underway, McWilliam’s 1998 Mount Pleasant Lovedale Semillon was named Best Wine of the Show at the National Wine Show in Canberra.

Hunter Valley wines account for less than 2 per cent of Australia’s annual crush in volume terms, yet around 6 per cent of it in value. Their visibility and market attention are out of all proportion to both. Undoubtedly because of its easy access to our biggest city, it is Australia’s most visited wine region, with more than two million visitors a year and more than 120 cellar doors. And the figure just keeps on growing. One of the newcomers this year was Tulloch, although the state-of-the-art facility in Pokolbin is merely a return to Tulloch family roots. The cellar door has been built on land owned by the family for 60 years. The family’s association with wine began in 1895 and by the 1920s John Tulloch was the largest vigneron in the Hunter. The company passed out of the family’s hands in 1969, although Jay Tulloch remained with it until 1997, when it was owned by Southcorp Wines. Tulloch bought the company back from Southcorp in 2002 and in October, Jay’s youngest daughter, Christina, became the fourth generation in the business, taking the role of operations manager.

“Tulloch has a great story to tell about the history of the industry in Australia and also now, about how a family can realise their dream of buying back their brand from a large conglomerate,” she said. While the company remains committed to Semillon, Verdelho, Chardonnay and Shiraz, it plans to add varietals such as Sangiovese and Marsanne. It will also produce Limited Release Semillon and Chardonnay in exceptional years. This year saw the re-launch of the 60 Year Old Pokolbin Dry Red and Private Bin labels - labels that back in the 1960s were held in much the same regard as Penfold’s now world-famous Grange.

Another of the region’s newer cellar doors is De Iuliis, designed by architect Lionel Glendenning and framed by the Brokenback mountain range. Opened in 2001, it has panoramic windows overlooking the gardens, a tasting area filled with natural light and artworks, a café/restaurant and an observation tower. Anna and Joss De Iuliis planted their first vines in 1990 and while they went for the classic Hunter varietals of Semillon, Shiraz, Chardonnay and Verdelho, their winemaker son Michael is also having great success with Merlot. Merlot is made only in exceptional years, the 2002 vintage being medium to full-bodied with a deliciously long sweet finish. Also worth seeking out is their Ruby Rose, a refreshing summer drink made from Shiraz albeit with a large proportion of McLaren Vale fruit. Their 1998 Aged Release Semillon, released last year, has lovely honey/toast characters.

After more than 30 years in the Upper Hunter Valley, Rosemount Estate opened a cellar door in the Lower Hunter in March 2003. While it still continues to operate at Denman, close to where it produces its flagship Roxburgh Chardonnay and Giants Creek Chardonnay, the new cellar door in Pokolbin is more conveniently located to capture the tourist trade. Rosemount has four vineyards in the Hunter - Roxburgh, Giants Creek, Yarrawa and Denman – each quite different in their terroir. The Roxburgh Vineyard in the Upper Hunter is on gently-sloping, terra rossa soil over broken limestone. Established in 1966, it is one of Australia's oldest Chardonnay vineyards and yields less than two tonnes per acre. Rosemount’s flagship Roxburgh Chardonnay is one that polarises consumers with its intense, varietal fruit character, its toasty oak spice and its big, blockbuster nature. The 2002 vintage was one of the best yet, with terrific natural acidity and more aromatic than usual.

Winemaker Andrew Koerner says cooler weather in the run-up to harvest made 2002 an excellent vintage in the Hunter, especially for the Roxburgh and Giant’s Creek vineyards. Giant’s Creek, another low-yielding vineyard, produces the wonderfully elegant Giants Creek Chardonnay, fermented in older French oak in contrast with the new French oak used for Roxburgh. Semillon from both the Roxburgh and Giants Creek vineyards goes into the Show Reserve Semillon, a classic Hunter Semillon that is cool-fermented and lightly oaked. Some Hunter fruit also goes into Rosemount’s Jigsaw and Diamond labels at the other end of the spectrum. The Diamond Chardonnay, for example, one of Southcorp’s biggest-selling wines, has Hunter fruit supplemented with South Australian and Victorian fruit. The budget-priced Jigsaw range includes an unusual but very flavoursome Verdelho Chardonnay Chenin Blanc blend.

Like Rosemount Estate, De Bortoli has also recognised the need for a presence in such an iconic wine region. Earlier this year it invested $5 million in a winery and vineyards in the Hunter. Adding to its Riverina and Yarra Valley holdings, its purchase of the former Wilderness Estate is part of a grander plan to have more than 60ha of plantings in the Hunter by the end of 2005. The company is aiming to produce Semillon, Chardonnay, Shiraz and Verdelho that reflect the region’s characteristics. Winemaker Scott Stephens said that in the case of Semillon, this means delicate citrus flavours with a capacity to age and change body and texture in the bottle. For Shiraz, it means a medium-body structure with savoury flavour profile, mid palate fruit and balance of flavour, tannin and alcohol. Stephens will be responsible for developing De Bortoli’s new Hunter Valley label as well as limited release individual vineyard wines and a mid-price range called Black Creek. The company plans to develop a new visitor centre, undoubtedly drawing on its highly successful Yarra Valley venture as a role model.

Another new cellar door to open this year was the $10 million Tempus Two complex in Pokolbin, comprising a boutique winery, cellar door, Oishii Japanese restaurant and an amphitheatre that can accommodate 10,000 people. It’s a huge achievement for Lisa McGuigan, daughter of the unstoppable Brian McGuigan. Brian, whose vineyard holdings today span many of Australia’s best known wine regions, has well and truly bounced back from the takeover which saw him reluctantly lose control of Wyndham Estate, the company he founded in 1970. His new company, McGuigan Wines, which he established in 1992, produces its own labels as well as supplying some of Australia’s leading wineries. Among its most popular labels is the Bin range, including a Bin 2000 Shiraz and Bin 7000 Chardonnay that offer great value drinking.

Of the 1.7 million tourists who visit the Hunter each year, around 1.2 million visit the McGuigan cellar door. If that sounds impressive, daughter Lisa’s success with Tempus Two has been pretty impressive too, taking production from just 6000 cases in 1997 to more than 50,000 cases in a few short years. Not surprisingly, Lisa wanted a label reflecting her own approach, so she has tailored her product to a discerning market that is neither elitist nor mass market. She uses elegant imported bottles, pewter labels, hand plunging of reds and open vat fermentation, drawing on lesser-known grape varieties to supplement the classics. Tempus Two winemaker Sarah-Kate Dineen has worked at Brokenwood, McGuigan and Wandin Valley Estate, among others, and is one of the state’s most up-and-coming winemakers.

Late in 2003, Poole’s Rock opened its new cellar door in Pokolbin, on the historic Glen Elgin estate founded by the Tulloch family in 1895. David Clarke started Poole’s Rock in Broke-Fordwich, a sub-region of the Hunter, in 1988 and the award-winning Poole’s Rock Chardonnay and Shiraz is still sourced from there. But the acquisition of the Tulloch property (which didn’t include the Tulloch brand) gives it a location on the tourist route, from which it can promote its Poole’s Rock, Cockfighter’s Ghost and Firestick brands. Broke-Fordwich is a special little region with some of the world’s oldest Verdelho plantings. The area is sheltered from much of the rainfall that surrounding districts receive and this, together with the soil – which ranges from sandy loam to river flat alluvial soil, red volcanic soil and pockets of red basalt, not unlike the Coonawarra terra rossa - accounts for the area’s uniqueness.

One of the leading producers, Margan Family Winegrowers, is building a new cellar door and restaurant in Broke, although it will continue operating the cellar door and café on its Beltree Vineyard in Pokolbin. Although Margan’s biggest seller is Semillon, Andrew Margan says the sub-region is becoming distinguished for its Verdelho, not just by consumers but also by the Hunter wine industry in general. Margan says his 2004 Semillon is a result of a conscious effort to move closer to a traditional Hunter Semillon, rather than the riper style he started with in 1997. Although it masqueraded for years under the name “Hunter Valley Riesling”, Hunter Semillon is one of the few immediately recognisable uniquely Australian wine styles. It matures rapidly in the warm climate and is generally bottled without oak, unlike elsewhere in Australia and France.

While many Hunter winemakers are making terrific Semillon, those at the forefront are McWilliam’s and Tyrrell’s, renowned for their Mount Pleasant Elizabeth and Vat 1 labels respectively. While Elizabeth is Australia’s most consistently awarded white wine, McWilliam’s Lovedale Semillon also has an impressive medal haul, its fruit sourced entirely from low-yielding vines that were planted by the late Maurice O’Shea in 1946. The company is one of only a few in Australia that bottle-ages its Semillon for at least four years before release. The results speak for themselves. This year it released three vintages of Elizabeth at once, from 2002, 2000 and 1996, a wonderful opportunity to show how the wine transforms from the citrusy, zesty characters of its youth, through some bottle-age to the traditional rich honey characters of extended age. Tyrrell’s Short Flat, HVD, Belford and Stevens vineyards are among the Hunter’s finest Semillon vineyards and Bruce Tyrrell attributes his company’s success to the age of the vines, soil, vineyard expertise and “the way that we have the ability to separate single parcels of fruit, bottle and age it until we believe it appropriate to release. With all of our wines we are remaining true to not only the Tyrrell style but to the classic regional flavours of the Hunter Valley”.

While Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc are generally unsuited to the Hunter’s hot, humid climate, Merlot shows promise, especially on the better-drained slopes in Broke-Fordwich. The Rothbury Estate’s 2002 Neil McGuigan Series Merlot has generous fruit, harmonious tannins and a long finish. Along with a 2002 Shiraz, it was made from specific parcels of fruit that were set aside by winemaker Neil McGuigan after being identified as having “something special”. Newcomer Glendonbrook Wines is also pinning some of its hopes on Merlot, its 2002 vintage deliciously complex with well-developed fruit. Winemaker Geoff Broadfield, who has been singing the Hunter’s praises for more than 20 years, believes Merlot might give Shiraz a run for its money. A few winemakers are working with Chambourcin, a French hybrid tolerant of high humidity.

Yarraman Estate has some of the oldest Chambourcin vines in Australia, producing it under its easy-drinking Black Cypress label. Yarraman also has a Classic Hunter range - consisting of its flagship varietals, Chardonnay, Semillon, Shiraz and Merlot – and the very affordable Sensus range. Established by Penfolds in the late 1950s as Dalwood Estate, Yarraman boasts nearly 80 hectares of vines, many over 40 years old. As Penfolds’ experimental vineyard, an array of varieties were trialled, including Gewürztraminer, Chambourcin, Shiraz and Chardonnay (a relatively unknown grape at the time). Many of these original plantings are the foundation of Yarraman Estate today. Ian Little, of the Little Wine Company, is passionate about Gewürztraminer and says show judges do not take it seriously enough. “Good traminer is like good riesling - it is dragged down by the sweet cheap ones,” he said. His Gewürztraminer has just a hint of sweetness, along with some spiciness and tropical fruit characters.

Ian and his wife, Suzanne, both winemakers, celebrated the 20th anniversary of their company with the opening of a new cellar door in Broke. They offer three ranges, Talga, LWC and Olivine, the last one dedicated to emerging varietals and blends such as Gewürztraminer, Viognier, Sangiovese, Merlot and Shiraz Viognier. One unique Hunter wine is Vinden Estate’s Alicante Bouschet, similar to a Rosé and made from the very rare Alicante Bouschet varietal, one of the world’s few red-flesh grapes. Responding to consumer demand for lighter reds, Bimbadgen Estate has delivered its third vintage of Rosé, a blend of Cabernet, Chambourcin and Sangiovese. Its previous vintage sold out in six months. Bimbadgen, which has one of the most eye-catching cellar door complexes in the Hunter Valley, this year released its third limited edition Art Series in partnership with Sydney’s Museum of Contemporary Art. The labels on the Sangiovese and Semillon Sauvignon Blanc feature works from the museum collection.

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Guide to the Hunter Valley ...

Attractions in the Hunter Valley include excellent food and accommodation, championship golf courses, galleries, antiques, horse riding and hot air ballooning. A good starting point is the Visitor Information Centre at the entrance to Cessnock Airport. Here you’ll find the latest Wine Country Visitors Guide, maps and brochures from wineries, accommodation houses, restaurants, events, tours and attractions.

While many visitors choose to explore the region by car, tour options include horse and carriage rides, bicycle and walking tours, minibus tours, four-wheel drive mountain and indigenous heritage tours, horse riding, sunrise champagne hot air balloon flights and tandem skydiving adventures. Arts, crafts and antiques are available at galleries such as Butterflies Gallery and Peppers Creek Antiques. Within an hour’s drive, you’ll find the art and craft village of Morpeth, beaches, whales and dolphins at Port Stephens, Lake Macquarie, Newcastle, mountains and rainforests.

The Hunter Resort lures guests with a wine school, cooking school and its most recent addition, the Bluetongue Brewery. Karina Helé-Barry, who worked as a chef at The Savoy in London, and husband Brian Barry, who has had 25 years experience in the wine industry, run hands-on cooking classes followed by lunch and a discussion on wine. Several times a year, the resort holds Elite Chefs weekends led by leading chefs such as Serge Dansereau, Michael Manners and Luke Mangan. The Wine School offers two-hour classes in which guests can walk through the vineyard and winery, before enjoying a tasting and tutorial. Inquiries: (02) 4998 7777.

Cypress Lakes Resort, which has a picture-postcard setting overlooking a golf course and surrounding vineyards, is home to the Golden Door Health Retreat – Elysia, the ultimate rejuvenation experience. Guests can choose from as little as a two-day independent stay up to a seven-day program engaging them in a variety of educational seminars, relaxation and energizing activities, therapies and treatments. Literally a spa within a resort, Elysia has a restaurant featuring spa cuisine. Information: www.goldendoor.com.au

Bimbadgen Estate, named “Best Tourism Winery” in the 2004 Hunter Tourism Awards, has the highly-acclaimed Esca restaurant, as well as luxurious accommodation and a large outdoor arena which plays host to a variety of major events. Also renowned for its events is Wyndham Estate, which holds Opera in the Vines every October and its famous Seasons lunches four times a year. The lunches, on the first Saturday of each season, are hosted by a prominent Australian chef who is invited to devise a special three to four course menu reflecting seasonal produce, matched with Wyndham Estate Bin and Show Reserve wines. Inquiries: www.wyndhamestate.com or (02) 4938 3444. The Seasons Plate Cookbook, published by Hardie Grant Books, is the next best thing for those unable to attend. It has recipes from chefs such as Luke Mangan, Serge Dansereau, Stefano Manfredi and Peter Doyle, all of whom have catered for past lunches.

Tranquil Vale vineyard, opposite Wyndham Estate, is a glorious, peaceful spot with a welcoming cellar door, three self-contained cottages and a swimming pool, tennis court and gymnasium. Each cottage has a veranda, open log fire, two double bedrooms and fully-equipped kitchen, with a breakfast pack provided for the first morning. Tariffs are $420 for two nights mid-week, $580 for a two-night weekend and $580.00 for three nights mid-week. Inquiries: (02) 4930 6100 or www.tranquilvale.com.au The recently refurbished Peppers Guest House still has its famed Chez Pok restaurant, but now also has a day spa, upgraded pool and sauna area, and lovely new furnishings. Inquiries: (02) 4993 8999 or www.peppers.com.au

Hunter Valley tourism information: www.winecountry.com.au

© Christine Salins

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