Mixed Assortment

Item Description

Blue Pyrenees Estate Assorted Selection x 6 Bottles

Kindly donated by Blue Pyrenees Estate

Midnight Curevee 2016 Sparkling x 1 Bottle

Eyes: Brilliant pale straw green with a very fine bead of persistent gentle bubbles.

Nose: The aroma is delicate & complex with characteristics of fresh lemon curd.

Mouth: Fresh lemon sherbet notes prevail on the front palate, followed by a soft dry creamy mid palate, then the fine minerally acid backbone creates the granny smith apple finish.

Winemaking Notes:

The production of “Methode Traditionnelle” (fermented in this bottle) sparkling wines has been an integral part of the winemaking at Blue Pyrenees Estate for many years. Although handpicked fruit is desirable for the production of premium sparkling juices, daytime temperatures in most Australian wine regions mean that hand-picked fruit is often too warm when received into the press. So in 1992 the team at Blue Pyrenees decided to experiment with hand picking at night, under lights, to optimize both fruit condition & temperature. The results were an amazing improvement – crisper cuvée (free drained) juices of outstanding quality, with higher natural acidity. The Midnight Cuvee was born! During harvest 2016 hand-picked Chardonnay & Pinot Noir grapes from Macedon Ridge vineyard were whole bunch pressed, then included with the best Chardonnay parcels from the Blue Pyrenees Estate vineyard, to again lift the natural acidity & freshness of the blend.

Section One Shiraz 2017 x 1 Bottle

Eyes: Bright ruby red.

Nose: Fragrant ripe blueberry fruit aromas plus vanilla, pepper, mushroom & toast.

Mouth: Dark fruits & licorice intermingled with toasty vanillin oak notes, precede a long lasting, pepper & spicy tannin finish. The medium weight but firm structure & fruit vibrancy of this wine ensure it has many possible food matches.

Winemaking Notes:

The Blue Pyrenees Estate Section One Shiraz wine was formerly known as Reserve Shiraz but year after year the majority of this wine is made from the oldest Shiraz vines known as “Section One” or block one of the Estate Vineyard. So from 2013 the new name Section One was adopted for the wine made from these 45+ year old vines. These robust old vines weather the variable vintage conditions better than any others & exhibit strong regional & varietal characters when approaching maturity. The grapes are co-fermented to dryness in open & closed fermenters with a tiny amounts of Viognier grapes before gentle pressing to extract all the colour, flavour & natural tannin from the skins. After pressing the wine is racked to barrels — new to four year old French & American oak barriques — for secondary fermentation & 24 months maturation before final barrel selection, blending of those barrels & a light egg white fining before bottling.

Richardson 2017 Shiraz x 1 Bottle

Eyes: Bright ruby red.

Nose: Distinctly ripe Pyrenees Shiraz aromas of blackberry fruit, licorice & pepper notes all supported by classy French & American oak influences.

Mouth: The blueberry, liquorice, black olive & spice flavours are all fruit derived but they have been crafted into a wine of great mouth feel by careful oak & tannin management. The long lasting spicy aftertaste is a delightful way to finish this Shiraz.

Winemaking Notes:

The Richardson Series of wines are produced only in great vintages from the most characterful batches of grapes identified by the Blue Pyrenees Estate winemakers as having the potential to make an iconic red wine as a tribute to the late Colin Richardson, himself a larger than life character. These wines are vinified & matured separately before confirmation of suitability to be called ‘Richardson’ & then preparation for bottling. The 2017 Richardson Shiraz is predominantly from the oldest Shiraz vines on the Blue Pyrenees Estate vineyard. These grapes displayed a great intensity of regional & varietal Shiraz characters as they reached optimum ripeness & balance (as usual)! Due to an overdue cooler & wetter growing season no Viognier was used — just a warm primary ferment & then importantly two weeks extended maceration on skins. Secondary fermentation & 24 months maturation in new & two year old French & American oak barriques ensured complexity, smoothness & integration of all flavour components before bottling in June 2019.

Champ Blend Blanc 2019 x 1 Bottle

Eyes: Deep green colour.

Nose: Honeysuckle, dried pears & spiced nuts.

Mouth: The subtle pear & apricot fruit flavours, combined with nuts & spices, are reminiscent of packets of mixed dried fruit & nuts used in cake making. The creamy mid palate, with unusually rich fleshy texture for a dry Australian white wine, is finished by crisp natural acidity matched by careful phenolic extraction.

Winemaking Notes:

In a regional co-operation the winemakers at Blue Pyrenees, inspired by wines of the Rhone Valley, have combined Viognier from Blue Pyrenees Estate with Marsanne & Roussanne from the Glenlofty Vineyard in the Landsborough Valley. This wine is named Champ Blend Blanc, which roughly translates to Field Blend White, indicating the French/Australian inspiration as well as the combination of fields or vineyards. The Marsanne, Roussanne & the Viognier are all processed separately but include the light pressings where much of the flavour in these varieties hide. The main components were battonaged in stainless steel tanks for six months while the Viognier was fermented & aged in old French barriques, before final blending, a light milk fining & bottling in August 2019.

Blue Pyrenees Estate 2017 Blend x 1 Bottle

Eyes: Bright ruby red.

Nose: Classic vibrant cassis fruit, violets, forest floor complexity & classy cedar oak aromas.

Mouth: Juicy ripe blackberries up front, complimented by tobacco leaves, mushroom & supporting cedary oak. The even palate structure of this blended red is framed by abundant yet integrated fine grain tannins & delivers a traditional old world style, suitable for ageing, with lingering fresh berry & choc-mint flavours.

Bodyfull

Winemaking Notes:

The Pyrenees region of Australia is best known for its bold savoury red wines & the “Estate” from Blue Pyrenees uses blending of the Estate vineyard’s best components to consistently reinforce this reputation. The 2016/2017 growing season was the wettest since 2010/11 with rains throughout winter & spring, then a mild summer & a warm dry autumn to finish which resulted in good vine canopies & above average size crops. The individual vineyard components were kept separate — initially in fifteen tonne static & three tonne open fermenters — then also while maturing in new (40%), two year-old (30%) & four year-old (30%) French & American oak barriques for a full 24 months. Final selections, then blending, a light egg white fining & bottling all occurred in June & July 2019.

Richardson Reserve 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon x 1 Bottle

Eyes: Deep purple/red colour.

Nose: Beach/iodine scents amongst blackberry fruit, savoury oak and some briar, tobacco and undergrowth aromas.

Mouth: Bright cassis fruit flavours, hints of mint and forest floor, which are all fruit derived, but they have been crafted into a wine of great complexity by ageing in the best available French oak which also allowed integration of all these flavours whilst adding to the structure and tannin, creating a long savoury aftertaste.

Winemaking Notes:

This Richardson Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon wine was produced from the most exceptional batch of grapes identified by the Blue Pyrenees team as “better than ever”, the same philosophy established in the 1990’s to create exceptional Blue Pyrenees red wine as a tribute to the late Colin Richardson. This wine was vinified and then, unusually for Blue Pyrenees, matured in 100% new oak, before final blending and preparation for bottling. The nominated 2013 Cabernet grapes always displayed intense varietal characters as they reached optimum ripeness and balance on the vine, in the near perfect red grape growing season of 2012/2013. Vinification included warm fermentation, and extended skin contact for 2 weeks, before 24 months maturation in new French oak barriques, ensuring complexity, smoothness and integration of all the flavour components and fine tannin, before bottling in June 2015.