Victoria

The Crittenden family are dedicated winemakers with an exciting range of handcrafted wines. Winemaking now resides with the talented Rollo Crittenden, who has taken over from his father, Garry, who founded the estate over 30 years ago. The Kangerong Pinot is a representative blend of fruit from across the 11 acres of their estate vineyard and is made with seven different clones of Pinot Noir.

This wine is all about aroma and texture. The nose is beautifully scented with floral notes underpinned by cherry fruit and a hint of spicy complexity. The palate is silky, the smooth tannins interwoven with juicy fruit and bright acidity. Perfect to drink now until 2020.

2013 was the best vintage yet for Circe, with consistently warm temperatures ensuring even ripening and healthy fruit. It is hardly surprising therefore that winemaker Dan Buckle has made a standout single vineyard wine from the Hillcrest Road vineyard this year. Extremely restrained and very Burgundian in style, this wine is defined by its savoury complexity. It is vastly different from what you might expect from an Australian Pinot Noir in almost every sense. The wine is pale in colour and delicate, almost pretty in style (typical for Mornington) yet it is also structured and conceals a power and a concentration that comes through on the mid-palate and remains evident on the extremely long and beautifully fresh finish. The nose and palate display subtle notes of hedgerow, smoke and bacon fat which complement the macerated ripe red berry notes, and the tannins are exceptionally fine. This is a must-try for Pinot-philes.
Catriona Felstead MW - Wine Buyer

Yarra Yering was the creation of Dr Bailey Carrodus, a legendary, pioneering figure in Australian viticulture who sadly died in 2008. He planted an eclectic range of European grape varieties but was particularly successful with Bordeaux grapes and Syrah. Usually he would blend Merlot with Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot but in 2006 made a wine exclusively from Merlot, not a grape which is widely or successfully planted in Australia. The aim is to produce something akin to a top Pomerol; the nose has an abundance of rich, plumy fruit with chocolate notes; on the palate the tannins are wonderfully ripe with a silky texture and the chocolate theme continues with hints of mocha too. Very long on the finish, impressively concentrated and well worthy of comparison to some of the great Right Bank Bordeaux wines.

The classic No 1. blend of predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon, with additions of Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot. Another long, hot and dry growing season resulted in a big brooding beast that will require even more cellaring than usual. The nose of currants, mint and leafy aromas give way to a huge core of concentrated fruit, offering up notes of liquorice, cassis and blueberry. Huge, but very fine tannins with balanced oak, there is a sense of precision and freshness despite the magnitude of this wine.

"The profound, deep ruby/purple-hued 2003 Dry Red Wine No. 2 offers an explosive bouquet of raspberries, mint, earth, kirsch liqueur, spice box, and licorice. Full-bodied and rich as well as remarkably elegant, complex, and nuanced with tremendous flavor dimension, it is amazingly light on its feet, and should evolve for a decade." 96/100 points. (Robert Parker - Wine Advocate - Oct-2005)

"Just a barrel or two are made in truly exceptional years, that's only when the Merlot in the original vineyard  has achieved perfect ripeness. Always a densely structured wine when young, that gives nothing away. It comes spectacularly to life after around 8-10 years in bottle and continues to open out with time. I recently sampled the 1992 vintage and it was stunning, revealing mulberry and plum notes with an exotic, spicy edge. New World's answer to Le Pin?!"
Hong Kong Fine Wine Team

"Always a talking point at a Yarra Yering tasting. Made using indigenous Portugese varieties and fortified very much in a vintage Port style. Think of a vintage port with slightly sweeter fruit and more appealing in its infancy. The Potsorts has come a long way in recent years, and as the vines age, the structure and depth increase and we now see a perfect balance with the alcohol. This should really be left for a decade, and will provide a great alternative to standard vintage Port. Robert Parker is a huge fan!"
Hong Kong Fine Wine Team

"The Underhill vineyard was bought in the late eighties, with the intention of the fruit going into the No 2. However the rich clay content in the soil produced fruit that had an identity all of its own, so the Underhill was born. The Underhill Shiraz is a much broader, muscular style of Shiraz than the Dry Red No 2, not dissimilar to Hermitage, with a huge core of black fruit, leather and black pepper notes. With age, the Underhill is perhaps the most individual wine I have tasted with savoury meat and stewed fruit aromas coming to the fore. This has been a favourite with Berrys' customers for many years now."
Hong Kong Fine Wine Team

A Northern Rhône blend of predominantly Shiraz with a hint of Viognier and an even smaller hint of Marsanne. This is the most seductive and graceful wine in the Yarra Yering range. There is an underlying power to this wine, with the Viognier offering some lift and aromatics to the nose, whilst the core of pure, silky black fruit on the palate is downright sexy! Although this is a joy to drink in its youth, it will certainly benefit from 5 years or so cellaring and will drink superbly for decades.

Giaconda Vineyard was established by Rick Kinzbrunner, a mechanical engineer who became interested in wine in the early 1970s and spent the next 10 years traveling to wine-growing areas overseas learning as much as possible. Rick was the first to establish a vineyard of any consequence in Beechworth when he planted in 1982. Now there is a real buzz for the region while his wines are counted among Australia’s very finest. The wines are hand-crafted and only top quality French oak is employed.

Rick named the winery after the Mona Lisa (“La Giaconda”), and much like their namesake, his wines are enigmatic. The Warner Shiraz offers plum, sour cherry and ripe blueberry alongside a comforting spice that envelops the mouth. But, it manages to balance these with restraint and a honed finish that belies expectations. Delectable.