2021 ROSE & BRAMBLE ROSÉ

Andrew made a great Rosé, Margan Shiraz Saignée, for about 20 vintages and then got bored with it so declared he wouldn’t make it anymore. Just as the Rose’ boom hit! Lisa decided to take over the project and with our winemaker Nicole Wilson and daughter Alessa Margan they re-worked the style, renamed the wine Rose & Bramble and designed a new label. Since we launched it in 2018 it has won medals, trophies and fans. Andrew is still part of the picture – he grows the grapes – and reluctantly acknowledges that he is also a fan of the new style.

GROWING SEASON

With much welcomed spring rain in 2020 we saw excellent canopy balance through all vineyards for our 2021 vintage. A mild summer allowed for excellent acid retention and a long ripening period resulting in elegant fruit character and seamless acid balance in white wines coming from 2021.

VINEYARD

This wine is mostly sourced from our Ceres Hill Vineyard (Merlot and Barbera) with these grapes grown on the parcels of red volcanic soils. We add a small volume of Pinot Grigio grown on our Saxonvale Vineyard on the Fordwich Sill which adds texture to the palate.

WINEMAKING

Our Rosé is made using a combination of varieties and winemaking techniques. A blend of Shiraz, Merlot and Barbera picked and pressed off skins immediately to achieve a faint salmon blush and encourage floral aromatics and elegant fruits. The Pinot Grigio component Is handpicked and fermented on skins to contribute texture to the palate.

TASTING NOTES

The wine has lifted berry aromas and a rose petal perfume with mulberry, strawberry, and pink grapefruit on the palate. The finish is dry and refreshing and the palate has lots of texture. An eclectic approach to winemaking has produced a dry wine packed with mouthfeel and fresh fruit.

WINE COMPOSITION

pH                                                                  3.25

Titratable Acidity                                       7.5 g/L

Alcohol                                                         12 %

Residual Sugar                                           < 2g/L

VINE AGE/CLONE

50 years / Busby

FOOD MATCH

Kangaroo steak tartare with quails’ egg and toasted brioche

CELLARING POTENTIAL

2-3 years

Margan Barbera was the variety that established us as ‘pioneers of alternative varieties’. Andrew is a big fan of Italian varieties and we researched this grape to see if it would work here in the Hunter. Back in the late 1990’s the region mainly had the standard line up of iconic Hunters – Semillon, Shiraz and also Chardonnay- and we wanted to see what else would work. Barbera originates from the North West of Italy and we were the first to plant this red grape here in 1998. It’s a long story but the clone we have planted is an Italian original and produces wines of true varietal definition and Italian personality.

Growing Season

Small bunches and intensely flavoured fruit with bright aromatics were a characteristic of the 2019 vintage, resulting in beautifully ripe and healthy fruit that we handpicked early February. Fruit quality was exceptionally high.

Vineyard

Our Barbera vineyard was planted In 1998 with cuttings from an original Italian clone on our Ceres Hill vineyard, just behind the winery on a streak of red volcanic soil. The great thing about Barbera is that it holds its acidity while achieving full flavour (phenological) ripeness making It very suitable to growing In the changing climate.

Winemaking

We hand pick the grapes at optimal ripeness and ferment under cool conditions using cultured, aromatic yeast. The wine was placed in a mixture of small and large older French oak barriques (225 litres) and puncheons (500 litres) where it matured for 12 months prior to bottling.

Tasting Notes

The wine is vivid purple in its youth with lifted aromas of red fruits- strawberry, raspberry, cherry and red current. The palate reflects the nose but also has savoury bramble berry and fresh mulberry notes. Touches of spicy star anise add extra interest and the tannins are soft and silky. The bright acidity gives a long, refreshing finish.

Wine Composition

pH                                                          3.46

Titratable Acidity                                7.0g/L

Alcohol                                                  13.5%

Residual Sugar                                     <1g/L

Food Match

It is a great food wine as the acid cuts through richer red meats like lamb. It matches well with hard cheese and is lighter in body and alcohol than many red wines. 

Cellaring Potential

10-15yrs

2016 FRANCIS JOHN MARGAN AGED RELEASE SEMILLON

If it weren’t for my father, Frank Margan, I would never have become a winemaker. He first planted grapes in the Hunter in 1965 and it was from those days that I fell in love with growing grapes and making wine. After my Dad passed away, I took cuttings from his DeBeyers Vineyard and replanted them on our own Timbervines Vineyard, in the volcanic soil of the Fordwich Sill. Handpicked, handmade and carefully cellared for 5 years, this wine is now ready to enjoy! Dad always loved Hunter Valley Semillon and this is my tribute to him. - Andrew Margan

Growing Season

The 2016 vintage was a cooler vintage and made elegant whites with flavour and direction. The fruit from this vintage was selected for its finesse and balance that have allowed me to make a Semillon with lots of acid and a fine structure, with age ability unlike any other area in Australia can produce.

Vineyard

The fruit for this wine comes off our small one hectare Francis John Margan or ‘FJM’ block. Situated on our Timbervines Vineyard on the red volcanic soil of the Fordwich Sill, this vineyard is planted with cuttings taken from the DeBeyers vineyard that Frank Margan planted in the late 60s.

Winemaking

The juice was fermented at cool temperatures to preserve delicate fruit characters. Our Aged Release Semillon has been made in a very pure style to reflect the traditions of the area. Strength of acid and line and length are the keys to the ageing style and this wine has been specifically made to have this covered. 5 years of bottle maturation allows both the young wine and the older wine to be seen in the one glass. This wine shows great ageing potential, well beyond the five years at release.

Tasting Notes

Semillon at five years of age shows just why this is one of the great wine styles of the world. It has a wealth of complex flavours, a soft but lingering acidity and a never-ending finish. The colour is still pale straw and the nose shows lemon peel, lime zest and a touch of honeysuckle. The palate has a range of citrus flavours- lemon grass, grapefruit, lime sorbet as well as a touch of honey and macadamia. The finish is long and lingering.

Wine Composition

pH                                      3.21       

Titratable Acidity               6.4 g/L 

Alcohol                               11.5%     

Residual Sugar                   <1g/L     

Food Match

Freshly shucked oysters with finger lime and cracked pepper

Cellaring Potential

15 years +

2021 WHITE LABEL CERES HILL SEMILLON

Growing Season

With much welcomed spring rain in 2020 we saw excellent canopy balance through all vineyards for our 2021 vintage. A mild summer allowed for excellent acid retention and a long ripening period resulting in elegant fruit character and seamless acid balance in white wines coming from 2021.

Vineyard

The vineyard faces east and has less sun exposure allowing for slower, even ripening. The soil is grey, alluvial clay which forces the vines to work hard giving lower yields and more concentrated fruit. This grey soil is distinct from the dolerite soil on the Fordwich Sill and gives Semillon with higher acidity and finer flavours. We ensure extra concentration in the fruit by keeping yields low and ‘fruit thinning’ when necessary which requires cutting off underripe grapes during the growing season so the vine can concentrate its energy to ripening the remaining bunches on the vine. 

Winemaking

The grapes were handpicked when just ripe, to maintain fine flavours and naturally high acidity. The juice was fermented on full solids using indigenous yeasts which offered a uniquely different style of Semillon contributing more generous aromatics than what is traditionally expected from Hunter Valley Semillon. In the winery, we leave the wine on lees to develop palate texture.

Tasting Notes

This wine has a lovely aromatics of lemon myrtle and chamomile flower. The palate shows preserved lemon peel, Tahitian lime with an edge of passionfruit husk with sherbet-like acidity on the palate.. The texture is dry with river stone and mineral notes and the finish is long and refreshing with tingling acidity.

Wine Composition

pH                                                           3.08

Titratable Acidity                                     7.8g/L

Alcohol                                                   11.5%

Residual Sugar                                       < 1g/L

Vine Age

50 years

Food Match

Tuna sashimi with pear, soy and yuzu

Cellaring Potential

10 + years