Mornington Peninsula (Victoria) – Pinot Noir

The signature of Mornington Peninsula (pictured right) is as supple as it is alluring, coaxing light and delicate varietal character from the locally grown Pinot Noir. Appropriately, the region’s wines are also slightly lighter and fresher in colour than its counterparts. Don’t be fooled by this apparent delicacy, as these wines lack nothing in intensity.

Not to be missed: Dexter Chardonnay and Dexter Pinot Noir. Tod Dexter was one of the pioneers of the Mornington Peninsula, and as head winemaker at Stoniers and then Yabby Lake, he was responsible for some of the most highly regarded Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in Australia. From the very first release it was evident that these were something special, refined in style with wonderful elegance. Quantities are tiny but worth searching out.

Great Southern (Western Australia) – Riesling

Great Southern Riesling differs from other regions – notably Clare Valley and Eden Valley – its aromas and fruit character lean towards the floral and spice spectrum rather than the citrus. Look for honeysuckle, orange blossom, chamomile and lemon thyme.

Margaret River (Western Australia) -Chardonnay

For many this is now the benchmark region for Australian Chardonnay with the ability to be both complex and easily alluring. Always generous, always balanced and instinctively matched with a toasty lick of new French oak, Margaret River Chardonnay will run from intense citrus flavours through to white stone fruit and tropical generosity.

Not to be missed: Fonty’s Pool Sauvignon Semillon and Fonty’s Pool Pinot Noir. Although initially renowned for its Pinot Noir, Pemberton’s cool climate is proving to be equally suited to a range of other noble varieties producing wines characterised by pure and precise flavours.  Recent reworking of some of the best vineyard plots for even lower yields seems to have brought an extra layer of complexity to the wines and the new vintages represent an exciting leap in quality, making Fonty’s Pool one of James Halliday’s ten ‘dark horses’, earning a coveted 5 stars.

Hunter Valley (New South Wales) – Semillon

(Picture right: Bronagh and I at Sobels Winery, Hunter Valley, where we tried some very drinkable Semillon!)

Semillon is regarded as the great wine of the Hunter, a wine with two lives -vibrant, fresh and crisp when young and then wonderful toasty rich characters with five years plus in the bottle. An Australian speciality that can live for 30 years!

Not to be missed: Keith Tulloch Botrytis Semillon and Keith Tulloch Shiraz Viognier. James Halliday commented “I cannot remember being more impressed with an initial release of wines than those under the Keith Tulloch label. There is the same almost obsessive attention to detail, the same almost ascetic intellectual approach, the same refusal to accept anything but the best” and four years on they remain in his elite 5 star category.

Click on ‘Australia’s Regional Heroes’ tag below, to view previous posts.

Content used with permission from Wine Australia.