E
very week I come across another one or two or 12:
funky labels put out by enthusiastic sommeliers; new
brands dreamed up by old wineries; début vintages
from young vineyards. To help you keep up with all
this newness, here’s my pick of three of Australia’s best emerging
winemakers – ones that have really stood out in the last year.Fleet Wines, Gippsland, Vic
In 2016, Justin and Lisa Jenkins got a call from a winemaking
friend in Gippsland: a couple of tonnes of cabernet franc grapes
were available if they wanted them – but they only had a few days
to take up the offer. At the time, Justin was working for a winery
in Sunbury and Lisa for a winery in the Yarra Valley but they
had been discussing establishing their own label. Now it looked
like fate had made the decision for them. Fleet Wines was born.
The following year, the couple moved to South Gippsland,
where Justin grew up. They sourced grapes from local vineyards
and, leasing space in friends’ wineries, started making a range
of lithe, savoury, elegant wines: beautiful, textural skin-contact
pinot gris, savoury rosé, nervy syrah. Last year, Justin and Lisa
took the plunge and bought their own land, 21 hectares of
rolling country just outside Leongatha. The plan is to plant
pinot noir and chardonnay this coming spring, and farm the
property using the principles of biodynamics and permaculture.
In the meantime, the 2019 vintage saw Lisa and Justin look
outside Gippsland for grapes to satisfy growing demand for their
wines. The result is a quartet of lovely wines from vineyards in
the Yarra Valley, Sunbury and the Mornington Peninsula that
all have the Fleet fingerprint of brightness and elegance.Aphelion, McLaren Vale, SA
Rob Mack and Louise Rhodes had been making small
experimental batches of grenache under their Aphelion label
since 2014, but in 2017, the wines really took off: Aphelion
was named Best New Act at the Young Gun of Wine awards
that year, and Mack was named The Young Gun of Wine
the following year.Mack calls it a case of “right wine at the righttime”.Whenhe
and Rhodes started crafting their wines in thenewgrenachestyle- grapes picked a little earlier; wines made lighter,spicier,more
sinewy than the big, boozy grenaches of yore –theywereahead
of the curve. By the time the style became popularin2017,they
had had a few years to get it right. Aphelion wines– boththe
straight grenaches plus various permutations onthegrenache/
shiraz/mataro triumvirate, as blends and singlevarietals– are
particularly vibrant and delicious expressions ofthisnewwave.
In 2019, the Aphelion range expanded to includetwo
intensely flavoured dry whites made from the greatcheninblanc
grape variety: one, called Kryos, from a vineyardintheAdelaide
Hills, is all cool chalky minerality; the other, Pir,is plumper,
lemon-pithy. Both are destined to blossom in thecellar,and
will help build the reputation of the young labelevenfurther.
Wines of Merritt, Margaret River, WA
Nick and Sarah James-Martin both had wine andhospitality
careers behind them when they moved to MargaretRiverin2015:
he came from a grape-growing family in South Australiaandhad
worked as a winemaker, marketer and writer aroundtheworld;she
had run some of McLaren Vale’s top cellar doorsandrestaurants.
In 2017, they started making wine under theirownlabel,
named after Nick’s great-grandparents, ForresterandPrim
Merritt, who arrived on the Murray River in 1894aspioneer
blockies. Nick’s travels in the Loire Valley cementedhislove
for chenin blanc and cabernet franc – both of whichgrowwell
in Margaret River – and these now make up thecoreWines
of Merritt range, plus a marvellous vermentinoandgorgeous
sauvignon blanc, also both grown locally (althoughNicksays
he’s tempted by an offer of some old-vine McLarenValegrenache
grapes this coming vintage).
Nick and Sarah are attracted to the textural,food-friendly
qualities of minimal-intervention wines, and they’veadoptedthis
approach successfully with their own project: fermentedwild,
some skin-contact, old oak, bottled unfined andunfiltered– it’s
some of the best new wine from the region in recentyears.●Top drops of the month2019 Rymill Cabernet
Franc, Coonawarra, $25
More winemakers in the
area are finding their red
grapes aren’t just suited
to serious cellar wines,
they can also make juicy
drops like this snappy
cab franc. rymill.com.auAEYSD
RINKING2019 De Iuliis Fiano,
Hunter Valley, $35
Well known for its classic
Hunter varietals semillon
and shiraz, De Iuliis
has cracked the fiano
code: citrus aromatics,
apricotty texture, crisp
finish. dewine.com.auUHTN
ERFIANO2019 Bress Rosé,
Harcourt, $30
This pale, dry rosé is
made from cabernet
grapes off old vines, so
it has more heft and
chew than others of the
style. Pair with gutsy fish
dishes. bress.com.auOBDL
ROSÉ2018 Hoddles
Creek Estate Syberia
Chardonnay, Yarra
Valley, $60
From the highest vines at
Hoddles Creek comes this
chardonnay, with flavours of
lemon and powdery chalk.
hoddlescreekestate.com.auIHHG
ADN
MIGHTYWestwardSingleMalt
Whiskey,Oregon,$130
Thismagnificentwhiskey
willmakeallthedifference
ina Highball,thecocktail
dujourofsummer:it’srich,
layeredandsatisfying,
withboldtoastedflavours.
westwardwhiskey.comOGWESTGOURMET TRAVELLER 39Drinks