Strangebird on the loose - Nero d'Avola

Nero d’Avola is native to Sicily, where it’s the region’s most planted variety. In recent years, plantings have spread to other parts of the world, including Australia, where the Chalmers family nursery imported the first Nero d’Avola vines in 1998 (although not released from quarantine for cultivation until 2001). Today, there are more than 55 Nero d’Avola vineyards in Australia.(Wine Companion Magazine, online @ @ http://www.winecompanion.com.au/news/wine-companion-magazine-articles/issue-21-nero-davola).

On the Granite Belt, Nero d'Avola is the province of Strangebird stalwart Golden Grove Estate. 600 vines were hand chip budded by owner Sam Costanzo and lovingly crafted into this elegant fruit driven wine by son Ray. The 2012 Nero D'Avola has a deep but vibrant cherry red appearance. The nose is rich with cherries, raspberries and red forest fruits with an underlying touch of sweet oak. The palate is soft and succulent with bursts of perfumed ripe fruit all in perfect harmony with the fine grain oak, plush tannins and crunchy acidity.The 2012 Vintage Grand Reserve Nero d'Avola has won serious applause with the following awards under its belt:

5 Stars (95/100): James Halliday
Silver: 2014 Aust. Small Winemakers Show
Silver: 2014 Cowra Wine Show
Bronze: 2013 Rutherglen Wine Show
Bronze: 2013 QLD Wine Awards

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Strangebird on the loose - Durif

 

Durif is a cross between Syrah and Peloursin. It was created at the university of Montpellier in the 1880sw by a Dr Durif who was interested in developing a grape variety resistant to downy mildew.It was introduced into Australia by Francois de Castella in 1908 and planted extensively in the Rutherglen area of Victoria. 

It was mistakenly identified in California for almost a century as Petit Syrah. It was only through DNA testing in the late 20th Century by Dr. Carole Meredith at the University of California at Davis that the mistake was discovered.

On the Granite Belt, Golden Grove produces this robust variety which is dying out in some other regions. Try it out this Christmas!

Strangebird on the loose - Barbera

Congratulations to Mark Ravenscroft. An article featuring Mark and Raven's Croft Wines appeared in the October-November edition of Queensland Smart Farmer.

'Most of my wines are made as natural as they can be. I use only the best quality grapes, thereby ensuring minimal use of sulphur. I also use a lot of wild yeast fermentation and do not add any powdered tannins. No animal products are used and my wines are therefore vegan friendly' Mark told Peter Scudamore-Smith.

The new Strangebird and wine trail map has been released at the Brisbane Good Food and Wine Show, so the Information Centre staff have been finding out a bit about some of the alternative varieties. 

Alternative varieties are defined as those that represent not more than 1 % of the total bearing vines in Australia This week we asked Peter from Boireann and Sam from Golden Grove to tell us about Barbera.

'Barbera is an Italian variety from the Piedmont region. It makes a deeply coloured wine with intense flavours. It is high in natural acid but low-ish in tannin consequently it is a good match for some food that would also go with white wine. It is a great match also for Italian dishes that don’t necessarily involve meat. We decided to grow Barbera because it’s Italian and we love all things (wine and food) Italian. We also have other Italian varieties - Sangiovese and Nebbiolo' says Peter.

'I decided to plant Barbera because of its Italian origin- I was looking at Italian varieties and decided to plant this one. There were a number that I could have chosen. The performance of this variety looked impressive and I was not wrong.It has performed really well for us here at Golden Grove' says Sam.

Wine-searcher (online @ http://www.wine-searcher.com/grape-27-barbera) reports that Barbera-based wines were a favourite with Savoyard army officers, who considered the wine a ‘sincere companion’, which helped them maintain their courage in battle.