By Fergal Gleeson
No- that’s not my wine cellar! Though I have a reasonable collection of about 150 bottles. Stockpiling wine thankfully does not harm others and is infinitely more enjoyable than collecting tinned food or tissue boxes or waiting for armageddon.
Autumn in Australia is a time of changing colours and cooler temperatures. Step out and enjoy nature. Then reward yourself with a textured white wine.
Complex Chardonnay
Juniper Crossing Chardonnay 2018 RRP $25
Brilliantly executed and well-priced Chardonnay from Mark Messenger at Juniper Estate. You get purity of fruit and complexity which comes from detailed winemaking including the use of multiple clones and yeasts, barrel fermentation and some extra time ageing on lees. More than we have a right to expect for $25!
Also look out for the classy 2019 Crossing Semillon Sauvignon Blanc. The Juniper Cellar Door won the 2019 award for ‘Best Large Cellar Door in Margaret River’ from Gourmet Traveller Wine. Remember it when we are all moving again.
Mon Tout Heydays 2019 RRP $30
Mon Tout is an exciting range of natural wines that throw out much of the rule book. There’s fermentation in clay amphora, tea bagging of fruit skins and novel blends. The inspiration is lo fi winemaking with no fining or filtration, minimal sulphur and vegan friendly.
Mon Tout is directed by Richard Burch, son of Howard Park’s Jeff and Amy Burch. Heydays has Chardonnay’s characteristic flavours of grapefruit and citrus but there’s also texture and breath. It’s very cool!
Look out for the range which also includes a Sauvignon blend, a Pinot Chardonnay Rosé and a Syrah/Pinot red.
McHenry Hohnen 2018 Laterite Hills Chardonnay RRP $40
This is a cerebral Chardonnay with chalk and wild yeasty smells. It tastes of grapefruit and lime with texture woven through it. This a distinctive Chardonnay that’s drop dead gorgeous and great value for the quality.
Red wine lovers check out their Zinfandel and GSM both rare in the region. McHenry Hohnen farm biologically and organically. They hold a 5 star Halliday rating.
http://www.mchenryhohnen.com.au
Howard Park Allingham Chardonnay 2018 RRP $89
Howard Park Allingham Chardonnay 2018 is the jewel in the crown of the winery’s white wine portfolio. This single vineyard wine from the cool Karridale subregion has a cornucopia of flavours including citrus, nuts, toast and sherbet.
High flyers will recognise it from the Emirates First Class range. The 2011 Allingham which is available from the winery’s museum collection is now at it’s peak. Allingham’s are highly age worthy!
Textured Sauvignon Blanc
Wines of Merritt Sauvignon Blanc 2018 RRP $28
Nick and Sarah James- Martin make small batch, natural style wines from single vineyard sites. The range includes Sauvignon, Vermentino, Cabernet Franc and a Chenin Blanc. The commonality is the focus on building texture in the wines through time on skins, wild fermentation and aging in old barrels.
There’s a great mouthfeel to this Sauvignon because of the natural winemaking approach. A tropical nose leads to refreshing lime flavour.
Cape Mentelle Wallcliffe Sauvignon Blanc Semillon 2016 RRP $49
Wallcliffe is one of Australia’s best SBS’s. A delicious nose with a hint of toast courtesy of barrel ageing, leads to a bright and linear wine coming from Cape Mentelle’s vineyards planted in 1970.
There’s no tutti frutti sauvignon excess here- it’s a very poised wine. The entry level Cape Mentelle 2018 SBS RRP $28 is fresh, vibrant and smashable! Wallcliffe is that and more.
Cape Mentelle is one of the region’s founding and leading wineries.
From Your Margaret River Region Magazine
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