Strangebird on the loose - Nebbiolo

Nebbiolo makes wine with a distinct brown colour. The wines are usually long lived and often reward cellaring for a decade or so. In some ways Nebbiolo wines resemble Pinot Noirs in the way that they age into wines with soft rich tannins. The wines have rich flavours with a nose most often described as 'tar and roses'. Some other flavours and aromas to look for are spicy, chocolate, leathery and earthy flavours. Think of a forest floor.
- See more at: http://www.vinodiversity.com/nebbiolo.html#sthash.jkclArCH.dpufNebbiolo makes wine with a distinct brown colour. The wines are usually long lived and often reward cellaring for a decade or so. In some ways Nebbiolo wines resemble Pinot Noirs in the way that they age into wines with soft rich tannins. TNebbiolo makes wine with a distinct brown colour. The wines are usually long lived and often reward cellaring for a decade or so. In some ways Nebbiolo wines resemble Pinot Noirs in the way that they age into wines with soft rich tannins. The wines have rich flavours with a nose most often described as 'tar and roses'. Nebbiolo makes wine with a distinct brown colour. The wines are usually long lived and often reward cellaring for a decade or so. In some ways Nebbiolo wines resemble Pinot Noirs in the way that they age into wines with soft rich tannins. The wines have rich flavours with a nose most often described as 'tar and roses'. Nebbiolo is notoriously difficult to grow well and for Australian red wine drinkers the first taste is often a bit unexpected, as the colour, aroma and mouthfeel are quite different from the Shiraz most of us were brought up drinking.

Nebbiolo takes its name from the fog (nebbia) that swirls around the Piedmontese hills at harvest time. All the literature suggests that not only is Nebbiolo difficult to grow well in Australia, but that it can be challenging for the palate of Australian wine-drinkers. We say 'Challenge away!'. The aroma of Nebbiolo is compared to ‘tar and roses’ and the variety 'typically produces rich and powerful wines with high levels of acidity, alcohol and tannins ... a distinct brown colour which is appropriately accompanied by flavours of earth, chocolate, leather and spice' says experimental wine website Different Drop.

 Multi-award winning winery Ballandean Estate produces Nebbiolo, and Leeanne Puglisi-Gangemi has this to say about the temperamental variety:

'We planted our vines about 20 years ago and have had our ups an down with the variety. In saying that, we are planting a little more of this variety this year to top up our volume, so I guess you could say,we have faith in the variety

'The wine we produce at Ballandean Estate is usually quite tannic with the characteristic “orange” tinge of the meniscus and the flavour is bold and fruit driven.  It is not a wine to be taken lightly and definitely a ‘food friendly’ style.  Served with a flavoursome pasta dish and you would swear you were in Italy.

'With the success of the Strangebird wine trail, we are confident that our next release, 2014 Nebbiolo will delight the adventurous wine tasters of the region.'

We're looking forward to it, Leeanne! Other producers in the region include Boireann Estate and Symphony Hill. 

Some other flavours and aromas to look for are spicy, chocolate, leathery and earthy flavours. Think of a forest floor.
- See more at: http://www.vinodiversity.com/nebbiolo.html#sthash.jkclArCH.dpuf

Some other flavours and aromas to look for are spicy, chocolate, leathery and earthy flavours. Think of a forest floor.

- See more at: http://www.vinodiversity.com/nebbiolo.html#sthash.jkclArCH.dpufhe wines have rich flavours with a nose most often described as 'tar and roses'. 

Some other flavours and aromas to look for are spicy, chocolate, leathery and earthy flavours. Think of a forest floor.
- See more at: http://www.vinodiversity.com/nebbiolo.html#sthash.jkclArCH.dpuf

Strangebird on the loose - Mourvedre

This week we have a guest post from Sue and Warren at Pyramids Road, who are enthusiastic about their Strangebird variety Mourvedre, and took a wet day off from pruning to tell us all about it. Over to Sue and Warren:

Mourvedre has many names -the French call it Mourvedre, Monastrell in Spain and Mataro in Australia. It is debatable about its origin but it is widely planted in the south of France and near to the east coast of Spain behind Alicante. In Australia, it was planted and grown as bush vines in the Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale. These plantings have considerable age where

some vines are 80-100 years old.

In our vineyard it stands straight and tall which means it is a pleasure to work with. It grows with gusto and proves difficult at pruning time as the canes grow very thick and strong. It loves the sunshine and warm days in our summer as the tannin in the skins needs this weather to ripen. 

We love this variety as it has the potential to be used in a blended wine or as a straight varietal wine. It classically has elements of spice, earthy, dark cherry flavours with a tannin structure that gives the wine great body and length. The wine is a dense purple colour that, while delicious in its own right, is best accompanied with food. It is not for the light hearted and accompanies any hearty meat dish on winter nights by the fire. It creates interest in the cellar door and most people are intrigued and willing to sample the wine. Since our first vintage in 2005 it has created quite a following and many repeat customers keen to see how each vintage changes.

Strangebird on the loose - Jaquez

Jacquez is a variety or a group of varieties from the species Vitis bourquiniana, sometimes called bourquina. It is believed to have originated in the Eastern United States. As it is not in the Vitis vinifera species it is not susceptible to Phylloxera and is can be used for resistantrootstocks.

Jaquez (also known variously as Lenoir, Jacquet, Jack, Blue French, Ohio, and El Paso,is a  hybrid grape resulting from a cross of the American Vitis aestivalis species of grape with an unknown Vitis vinifera pollen donor. This hybridisation may have occurred naturally, as was the case with many of the early American grape cultivars. From its wild South Carolina parent, Lenoir carries natural resistance to the Phylloxera pest. On the Granite Belt, Ridgemill Estate grow Jaquez on their Severnlea vineyard.

The intensely coloured berries have a dark coloured juice with a distinctive flavour. Jaquez also has the distinction of being banned by France in 1935.

A visit to Twisted Gum- a blog from Amanda at Cooker and a Looker

Amanda from the blog 'Cooker and a Looker' wrapped  up her tour around Southern Queensland on the Granite Belt with a visit to Twisted Gum winery. Here's what she had to say about this local gem:

Michelle and Tim’s enthusiasm for wine is infectious.  During spring, Michelle hosts sunset walks through the three acre vineyard.  Gus the vineyard dog leads the tour, which winds through the vineyard and offers views over Girraween National Park. Parched from your walk?  Tim has you covered! Finish off your tour tasting Twisted Gum’s wines accompanied by artisan cheeses on the veranda as the sun sets – and they’re not joking about the sunset – stunning!

Twisted Gum are a dry land vineyard, so a highlight for me was tasting the difference in that dry and wet years made to the produce of the same vines.  Also, give the pink moscato a try: sweet wines aren’t my thing, but theirs is a horse of a different colour. 

Photo courtesy of Amanda

 Read more of Amanda's blog here.