Caledonia Australis Pinot Noir 2012

The 2012 vintage was strongly affected by the residual soil moisture that carried over from an incredibly wet 2011. The vines responded to the moisture and produced large strong canopies. The crop level was low (and this again was attributable to 2011) with a lower number of bunches per vine than usual. All these factors combined with a colder and drier than usual period in February and March to yield small but very concentrated bunches.
Like 2009 the harvest was more leisurely as the flavours came on gradually and we had plenty of time to watch and wait. In the end the appearance of low level shrivel caused us to start bringing the fruit in. 2012 was a landmark vintage for us, as it was the first year the chardonnay reached full Grade A Organic status.

Colour

bright ruby with a light purply/watermelon coloured hue

Nose

Lifted aromas of pomegranate, red cherries, roses and turkish delight mingle with exotic foresty notes of cinnamon and bracken.

Palate

On the palate it becomes plain how young this wine is. Tannins and acid are tightly wound together and the finish is firm and grippy. There are also citrus peel notes and other darker fruits present, but the wine needs time to unfurl and soften.

Lots of factors make working with Gippsland fruit interesting, and this year was no exception. This year we had shorter skin contact times that usual, mostly due to the very intense nature of the fruit tannins. <br>The fruit was destemed and crushed but it became increasingly evident that the phenolic structure of the fruit was delicate and the downside risk of extracting greener tannins had to managed. As usual the ferments were allowed to begin naturally but we made more effort this year to work the skins whilst trying to keep the ferment temperatures low. This had the desired effect and minimal green tannins were extracted and the ripe tannins we did extract were fine grained and grippy. Again, we were forced to deviate from our preferred approach and the wine was racked on multiple occasions prior filtration and bottling. This year we bottled a small amount without any filtration at all. Please contact us, if you are interested in ordering this wine.

$168.00

Out of stock

2 reviews for Caledonia Australis Pinot Noir 2012

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    Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Wine Advocate #201 – 90+ Points

    Pale ruby with a hint of purple to the color, the 2012 Pinot Noir offers an attractive nose of ripe strawberries and cranberries with touches of lavender, violets and underbrush. Light-bodied and elegantly fruited in the mouth, it is structured by a low level of very finely grained, silky tannins and a crisp backbone of uplifting acid before finishing with great poise. Drink it now to 2017+.

    Patrick Eckel (winereviewer.com.au) – 94 Points

    This is a great representation of quality pinot coming out of Gippsland at a very affordable price point. The wine is a light red in color with good clarity. The nose is attractive with floral cherry, sweet baking spices and French oak.

    The palate shows typical varietal expression and considerate winemaking with delicate and stemmy cherry given spice and depth by chary vanillin oak. The tannins are drying and accentuate the spicy fruit driven length to finish. Drinking well now and will continue to evolve over the next decade.

    WHEN TO DRINK

    Optimal Drinking
    2014 – 2024
    Date Reviewed

    09 04, 2014

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from the fertile soils of Leongatha, Gippsland Australia