“We live in hallowed times: the ’18 cabernets from Margaret River are being released into the wild… there’s never been a better time to be alive. Concentrated, fine, pedigree cabernet explosive, low-down torque that drags the flavors of the palate into the interminably long finish. Epic. Will live as long as you do.”
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Light and well balanced, this is a fruit-driven wine with predominantly red fruit and a surprisingly rich middle palate supported by good oak and balanced tannins. Very distinctive Margaret River Pinot.
Published April 2021
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The first wine I’ve tasted produced anywhere from that fateful year is actually a real cracker, with a light almost ethereal nose and palate which widens a few hours after opening to reveal green apple, pear and sherbet flavours. Very young obviously but the potential for real development here is considerable.
Published April 2021
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Still very young, this is a remarkably layered and complex Cab, with red and dark berry flavours supported by soft oak and warm tannins. Very dark coloured and (. . .) well priced for such sophistication.
Published April 2021
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Baby sister to Moss Wood’s iconic Cabernet, this has been dubbed “Australia’s best value red” and you can taste why immediately: dry, deep dark cassis, great wood integration and long palate persistence make this a steal (. . .).
Published April 2021
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Youthful yes, but this has a wonderful depth of flavour and character I wasn’t expecting. Perfectly balanced, apple, pear and honeysuckle flavours supported by light oak. Destined to mature wonderfully, if you have the patience.
Published April 2021
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Intense, dense cabernet sauvignon with ripe cassis, blueberry, violet, black berry, wood-smoke and spicy French oak flavours. A sumptuous, almost decadent wine that is built for the long-haul but is dangerously accessible now. Incredibly concentrated.
Published April 2021
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The colour is very deep red/purple and there are rich, ripe berry fruits on the bouquet, blackberry to dark plum with dark chocolate and cocoa powder overtones, while the palate is full-bodied, rich and dense, with masses of drying tannins. Fabulous concentration and balance. The style is of a riper or warmer-year cabernet, without the leafy notes or much of the bright cassis fruit that the region can deliver. A touch of coffee-mocha on the finish. A solid wine, less detailed than we might expect: a very good Moss Wood cabernet.
Published April, 2021
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Western Australia’s curious and creative winemakers have long strived to show our hand at mastering new grape varieties foreign to our shores, with worthy success.
Spicy, bright, ripe-driven reds such as Tempranillo (Spain) and Zinfandel (California) and minerally, fruit-driven whites like Italy’s Fiano and Vermentino varieties are some of the incarnations of various clones introduced and nurtured here in WA and interstate.
While plantings of these and others such as Pinot Gris and Sangiovese are relatively recent, another with established roots – regarded as the world’s greatest – is one most winemakers regard as the holy grail.
Pinot noir would be the bottle of choice for most wine retailers, experts and nuffies who may find themselves on death row. Without hesitation their go-to in an hour of need or greed.
The ancient eastern French vine (geographically named Burgundy there) carries many clones, each with enormous variation on quality, and especially dependent on where it is planted. No grape is more sensitive to the nuances of climate and terroir, which makes pinot noir the most honest and open of all the varieties – good, rad or ugly.
When on song, its beguiling charm and divine expressions can transport the senses to new dimensions, and drop winemakers to their knees if their toil was fruitless.
As UK wine writer Simon Woods wrote: “Great burgundy is like an orgasm. If you’re not sure whether you’ve had one or not – you haven’t. And if you have had one you want another as soon as possible.”
Good pinot noir can be seductive, silky, exotic, spicy, floral and fruity, all at once. A wine of intriguing personalities and characters, a choir of enticing flavours that slowly unveils its soul and captures the heart and senses.
Prices of the very best pinot noir in Burgundy can be catastrophic. These are usually classified grand cru, and the few I’ve tasted left me spellbound, like time stopped as the wine danced glorious and gracefully around.
It’s the quest for greatness that makes the grape irresistible for many a winemaker and winery owner, but one that often ends in heartbreak at much expense.
The variety’s greatness hinges on crucial elements such as vineyard site, clone selection, attention to detail and vintage conditions moreso than our traditional varieties of shiraz, cabernet, riesling and chardonnay.
Many winemakers have been left wanting in the winery after pinot harvest, frustrated by the challenges and nuances required to produce a good one. It’s a frustration shared by pinot-loving wine consumers faced with the hefty expense to experience greatness.
WA is blessed with high-quality renditions of cabernet, shiraz or riesling from $20, but any pinot worth drinking begins at $30 – and that’s the tip of the iceberg for those chasing glory.
But that’s a win in itself. Pinot Noir is grown in few places across Australia (notably Yarra Valley and Geelong in Victoria and Tasmania) but WA’s wine industry has a knack of punching above its weight, as it has with pinot, with fine examples that each show glimpses of its majesty.
Two of our cooler climes regions in the Great Southern (where eight per cent of total wine grape crush is pinot, mainly in the Porongurups and Denmark) and Southern Forests (where pinot accounts for 33 per cent of the wine crush, mainly in Pemberton and Manjimup) produce esteemed pinots in the $30-$60 range.
In warmer Margaret River, Moss Wood has bucked the trend for some time, as has nearby Pierro, both slightly dearer renditions in a region where pinot noir comprised just one per cent of total wine grape crush last vintage.
. . .
You don’t get a lot of pinot in Margaret River, but regional pioneers Moss Wood has made it for as long as they have their more reputable cabernet and chardonnay. The 2018 is a 50-50 blend of the D4V2 and D5 clones planted on the estate. Dried herb, clove, cedar and minty notes and deft red fruit are combed and wrapped by a silky fine texture and refined dusty tannins.
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A blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot, malbec and petit verdot. Deliciously intense red with juicy cassis, plum, blueberry flavours smothering spicy oak characters. Very approachable now but will become even more complex and interesting with bottle age.
Published April 2021
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