eRobertParker.com 94 points!
eRobertParker.com 94 points!"The 2008 Pinot Noir is about a 50 / 50 blend of Yarra and Beechworth fruit. "Yarra on its own can be a little too pure with less structure, and Beechworth can be a little overpowering in that area," Rick informed me. The grapes were fermented with a small percentage of whole bunches but was mainly de-stemmed and lightly crushed with a 3 week maceration followed by around 15 months of maturation in oak, 40% new. The wine has a medium ruby color and nice intensity of wild ferment and game aromas over black cherry and ripe raspberry with subtle notes of violets, cinnamon stick, tar, loam, anise and espresso. Medium-high acid and a medium level of fine grained tannins provide solid structure to the savory, forest-floor, espresso and beetroot flavors opening out on the palate. This is an elegant, medium-bodied Pinot with a long finish; 350 cases were produced. Though delicious now, this wine should be even better in 12 months, cellaring through 2018+.
Of all my visits around Victoria this time, Giaconda was one of the most fascinating and rewarding. Fascinating because Rick Kinzbrunner is inspired and inspiring, rewarding because the wines are so mind-blowingly good. If not Australia's greatest dry white wine, Giaconda's Chardonnay is certainly right up there. The grapes come from a small (4 hectare) patch of silicified soil (unique to this area) just in front of the winery. In terms of production, there are no shortcuts. Receiving 100% barrel fermentation, natural yeasts and full malo-lactic, the wine spends just under 2 years in barrel, 1/3 new wood. It is left on its lees for 2 years, but if necessary some barrels are racked. There is not a lot of lees stirring here and the wine is never pumped or filtered but strictly bottled by gravity flow."
Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Wine Advocate # 189 Jun 2010
Country:
Australia
Region:
VIC-(Other)
Variety:
Wine Red - Pinot noir
Size:
750mL
