Frogmore Creek Riesling 2011 Tasmania

Frogmore Creek Riesling 2011 from southern Tasmania a cool region for wine production and is often considered to be marginal for ripening it has a long growing season. These slowly-ripened grapes develop pure fruit flavours, fresh natural acidity.
Tasmania is the most southerly point in the world involved with grape growing and wine making - and the thing that is most surprising is the many microclimates that exist on this island with its maritime climate. The west coast is wet, cold and has rainforest scenery with mountainous terrain, the east coast is very dry ( due to the rainshadow from the mountains) and the north coast also has a good climate for grapes, the soil is good for grape production - overall a great place for cool climate grapes! Pinot Noir is the most planted grape, with Chardonnay following in second place with half its weight per annum. The land is being snapped up by many Australian producers as well as international big producers - so watch this space.

The wine surplus much talked about in Australias mainland does not esist here - they can sell everything they produce ( the level of production is about 3% of the Australian production) and the quality is high, little gets exported .
The grapes for this wine come from 2 vineyards, 87% from the Frogmore Creek vineyard, in Penna, Southern Tasmania, and the remainder 13 % from the Meadowbank Vineyard, Cambridge in South Tasmania.

The grapes for this wine are crushed and de-juiced with only slight pressure then cold-settling overnight. Yeast added to allow it to ferment to full dryness.

This wine waspale lemon and had low aromas of apricot and green apple with a little minerality thrown into the mix. It was dry on the palate with lemon, pithy lime and some apple, great zesty acidity and the alcohol was in balance offering sufficient glycerol to produce a silkt texture in the mouth but not warm on the palate. The length was good with lime and lemon to finish. This was a wine you would recognise as Riesling and love it for its elegant character.

Score : 85

 

Jansz Premium Cuvee Brut NV Tasmania

Jansz Premium Cuvee Brut NV is a wine made with grapes from the Tamar  Valley in the heart of the Pipers River region in north eastern Tasmania.  Red basalt soils and a cool climate moderated by the proximity of Bass Strait, means the vineyards are ideal for allowing grapes to ripen slowly and develop the lingering acidity essential to produce a premium sparkling wine.
Jansz was Tasmania’s first sparkling wine to be made according to the traditional méthod champenoise, the winemaker since 2001 is Natalie Fryar, and the blend of grapes used  is 53% Chardonnay and 47% Pinot Noir. The grapes come from various vineyard plots and are vinified separately until the wines go through secondary fermentation in bottles and are aged on yeast lees for as long as possible; the average tirage of the final blend is 2 years.
This sparkling wine had fine swift bubbles which prickled in the mouth and had persistence. Aromas of white flowers, biscuit and apple are followed by apricot, lemon, apple and generally fresh well balanced acidity, a hint of nutty biscuit generally adds another dimension to this wine, it has an elegance not often found in New World sparklers maybe due to its time on the lees or the 100% Malolactic Fermentation and the final assemblage! The length is fresh, appley and has a minerality that was not apparent initially on the palate. At £12.95 from Slurp - a bargain!
Score : 87

Tasmania
Tasmania is the most southerly point in the world involved with grape growing and wine making - and the thing that is most surprising is the many microclimates that exist on this island with its maritime climate. The west coast is wet, cold and has rainforest scenery with mountainous terrain, the east coast is very dry ( due to the rainshadow from the mountains) and the north coast also has a good climate for grapes, the soil is good for grape production - overall a great place for cool climate grapes! Pinot Noir is the most planted grape, with Chardonnay following in second place with half its weight per annum. The land is being snapped up by many Australian producers as well as international big producers - so watch this space.

The wine surplus much talked about in Australias mainland does not esist here - they can sell everything they produce ( the level of production is about 3% of the Australian production) and the quality is high, little gets exported .

Frogmore Creek Pinot Noir 2008, Tasmania

Frogmore Creek Pinot Noir 2008, Tony Scherer, Frogmore founder, has been an organic farmer since 1974. The wine is made by Alain Rousseau ( from a vigneron family of the Loire Valley France ) at the Frogmore Creek Winery in Penna, Southern Tasmania which sources grapes from the finest cool climate regions in Tasmania. , traditional french methods are used, which include

48-hour pre-ferment soak. Inoculated ferment in 1/2and 1 tonne open fermenters, hand plunged 3-times daily. Then pressed with the skins into stainless steel tanks for completion of primary fermentation. Then transfer into French oak for innoculated MLF before racking off the lees and further barrel maturation.

This wine has the expected hue of a Pinot, medium transparency with a ruby core and a pale garnet rim, the aromas are reminiscent of baked black and red fruits and have a pungent candied sweet aroma.
On tasting it, it has fresh acidity and well integrated alcohol ( 14.5%)  which enrobes and adds structure to this lovely earthy, fruity ( red cherry and cranberry and a touch of the sharpness that one finds in red currants), and all intermingled with spice. The tannins are low, ripe and silky - once more gently supportive without interrupting the enjoyment of this cool climate but definitely New World Pinot! An elegant, stylish wine which I would love to have in my cellar.The length was good with fresh red fruits all the way.
Score : 85


It has won awards - a Bronze, 2010 Tasmanian Wine Show and then (90 points) in the Australian Wine Companion 2011, so a wine worth looking out for.
See Jancis Robinson's Tasmanian 'Tasmania - island of opportunity'. Tasmania is the most southerly point in the world involved with grape growing and wine making - and the thing that is most surprising is the many microclimates that exist on this island with its maritime climate. The west coast is wet, cold and has rainforest scenery with mountainous terrain, the east coast is very dry ( due to the rainshadow from the mountains) and the north coast also has a good climate for grapes, the soil is good for grape production - overall a great place for cool climate grapes! Pinot Noir is the most planted grape, with Chardonnay following in second place with half its weight per annum. The land is being snapped up by many Australian producers as well as international big producers - so watch this space.
The wine surplus much talked about in Australias mainland does not esist here - they can sell everything they produce ( the level of production is about 3% of the Australian production) and the quality is high, little gets exported .
To see Tony Scherer talking on the Tasmanian Pinot Noir at Frogmore Creek - click here.