FOOD & WINE
Vintage and vintages
WHITES AND ROSÉS Fresh fruity wines from the 2021 vintage in white and pink are now being released. They’re delicious, youthful wines befitting the spring and summer weather about to come. Oliver’s Taranga 2021 Vermentino The 2021 vintage in McLaren Vale was exceptional, some winemakers are marking it one of the best this century. It came as a welcome relief after a tough 2020. The great season was due to a wet winter which allowed the vines to produce a good canopy, and a cool and dry summer for even ripening. Oliver’s Taranga revelled in the low summer temperatures, which have gifted us even, slow ripening conditions for the fruit, producing good flavours, with fine tannins and lovely acid. The Vermentino displays zesty lemony acid, fresh honey florals and sea breeze, a touch of fruit tingle on the finish. Talcum powder tannins give a savoury line. A no brainer with fresh seafood. $27 RRP Lake Breeze Wines 2021 Vermentino The 2021 vintage was exceptional, with almost perfect weather ensuring full ripeness, good acidity and great flavour development. Our 2021 Vermentino is so deliciously crisp and dry. It is pale straw in colour with green edges and exhibits attractive aromas of fresh pear, orange blossom and lemon peel. The citrus flavours flow onto the palate which shows lovely minerality that the variety is known for and a long zesty finish. Perfect with seafood – think calamari or fried white bait. 92
Hither & Yon 2021 Aglianico Rosé Vintages at the beginning are always good, this one just got better every day. The primary reason was of course nature’s gift – an ideal growing year. We chose to pick a wee bit later, to give full fruit flavour but still bright, fresh acidity and crunch, tannin and earth texture. Our Aglianico Rose is hand-picked and whole bunch pressed into stainless, wild yeast fermented and left to go dry naturally after four weeks. This is a full-bodied rose for all-year-round drinking, juicy and puckering, with some orange and grapefruit pithiness but with an authentic varietal savoury and mineral crunch. Conte Estate – Vine Shed Pinot Noir Rosé An extremely great vintage for McLaren Vale, where we experienced the best growing conditions in recent years. 2021 produced slow ripening bunches provided by the cooler weather creating good flavours, particularly in shiraz, with powerful flavour and subtle tannins. The Vine Shed Rose is semi-crushed with minimal skin contact, then cool-tank fermented. This wine is semi dry with flavours and aromas of watermelon, raspberries, and strawberries.
