Summary: The wine regions of the great state of Victoria are some of Australia’s most picturesque and historical. Today we can expect to see exciting wines and evocative wine styles as common fare. Hare & Tortoise represents the steady pursuit of fine, individual, regional wines of great drinkability & interest through patience, knowledge and a hands-off approach to winemaking.   

Vineyard: Sourced from a combination of upper and lower Yarra Vineyards, but primarily from vineyards within the Coldstream sub-region.

Winemaking: Mostly machine harvested with select hand picking of individual blocks.  De-stemmed and fully fermented in open top fermenters with a small addition of whole bunches for complexity.  The wine was blended when fermentation complete and transferred to stainless steel for maturation with 25% moving to 2-year-old French oak for 6 months. The wine was then bottled with minimal fining and filtration and had minimal sulphur additions. 

2019 Vintage: The 2019 vintage was short and compressed, showing fantastic quality across all varieties. The warm and dry season contributed to the short ripening period. Luckier than other parts of Australia good rainfall during winter and early spring meant our rich red soils were at full water capacity. The vines utilised this water source to establish healthy canopies, allowing adequate shading on the fruit during hot days. The Yarra experienced average rainfall at the start of the season, until an eight-week dry spell that started in mid-January.

Tasting Note: Dark hues with a cherry/berry burnish. Absolute Pinosity exemplified with plum, spice, strawberry and autumn leaves. The palate is light to medium weighted but with complex and long-lived flavour. Lifted red and purple fruits with the subtle complexing of earth, minerals and forest floor. A beautiful Pinot Noir from a very fine vintage that is drinking superbly now but will also reward short term cellaring.