House of Arras

FOR TWO DECADES, ED CARR, HOUSE OF ARRAS CHIEF SPARKLING WINEMAKER, HAS BEEN TIRELESSLY IDENTIFYING AND DEVELOPING THE VERY BEST VINEYARD SITES TO CRAFT WORLD-CLASS SPARKLING WINE. THIS JOURNEY LED HOUSE OF ARRAS TO CALL THE ANCIENT SOILS AND COLD CLIMATE OF TASMANIA HOME. WHAT HAS BEEN LEARNT DURING THIS JOURNEY IS HOW GRAPES CAN EXPRESS THEIR BEST – IT’S A SCIENCE AND AN ART. THESE WINES EXPRESS THEIR AGE, THEY EXPRESS THEIR ORIGIN; THIS GIVES ARRAS A UNIQUENESS, WHICH IS PART OF THEIR STYLE.

Ed Carr is Australia’s most awarded sparkling winemaker TASMANIA – OUR HOME

House of Arras is located in the Pipers River sub-region in Tasmania’s North. Fruit for House of Arras’ sparkling wines is sourced from a selection of outstanding vineyards from the North, East and South of Tasmania, selecting from the best vineyard sites for each varietal.

Grapes are specifically handpicked and carefully selected for their excellence and character. Each location bestows its own nuances of character on Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier fruit. It is only after this selection that the grapes are then allowed to mature, in the finest oak barrels available.

Tasmania’s climate is significantly cooler than the mainland, with long summer daylight and maritime influences, providing ideal conditions for long, mature and consistent fruit development. ED CARR

“Few winemakers are held in such high esteem as Ed Carr, whose sparkling wines are challenging the finest from Champagne” – Huon Hooke, Gourmet Traveller Wine

Ed Carr is Australia’s most awarded sparkling winemaker, with 35 years’ experience in the Australian wine industry and 28 of these specialising in sparkling wine production.

Over the past 20 years, Ed and his sparkling winemaking team have collected more than 120 trophies, and over 2,300 awards on the wine show circuit, including many “Best Sparkling Wine of Show” trophies at capital city wine shows.

In 2011, Ed was awarded the impressive title of ‘Winemaker of the Year’ at the prestigious Australian Gourmet Traveller WINE magazine awards. Judging for this concentrates on individuals whose hard work, commitment, individuality and inspiration has recently resulted in creating exceptional, world-class wines.

Ed firmly believes that the stand-out Australian region for premium sparkling wine is Tasmania, which is now the basis of many world-class sparkling wines including the House of Arras range.

THE ART OF BLENDING

The art of blending sparkling wine is one that can only be mastered with years of experience. Many individual parcels are woven together to create the final blend, each bringing its own profound character to the complete wine.

Up to 40 base wines go into the blend for Arras, with Ed Carr’s skill and experience crafting wines with elegance, complexity, depth and longevity - the absolute benchmark for Australian sparkling wine and ensuring Arras wines are of a consistently high standard and quality.

The world’s leading sparkling wines require time to develop complexity and character; part of Ed Carr’s long term vision for the House of Arras was to release a single vintage wine with a minimum of 10 years tirage age and this vision is now realised as the House of Arras takes the next step in its journey.

House of Arras prides themselves on allowing wines to mature into rich, elegant sparkling wines, which are undoubtedly some of the best in their class. To be recognised with the world’s best, this level of wine aging is absolutely essential.

At the heart of House of Arras is a simple philosophy: to create world class sparkling wine; sourcing outstanding cold climate vineyard sites, perfecting the craft - a fine balance of oenology and the art of blending, and most importantly, patience to allow these wines to mature at their own pace.

The House of Arras is a true expression of its origin and maker – a marriage of exceptional cold climate Tasmania vineyards and uncompromising sparkling winemaking techniques, mastered over decades. ❧

Tasting notes

BRUT ELITE

Appearance: Medium straw colour with a fresh golden hue

Aroma: Exotic characters are drawn together in this captivating wine including white peach, lychee, spice and fresh oyster

Flavour: The palate is rich and generous with opulent flavours of lychee, glace cherry and truffle oil. A perfectly poised balance of dosage, acidity and structural tannins this wine exhibits a remarkable presence and persistence GRAND VINTAGE

Appearance: Crystal clear with an ultrafine and persistent bead

Aroma: An intriguing aroma reminiscent of sautéed mushroom, toast, exotic spice and sea brine

Flavour: An immensely complex melange of flavours including buttered toast, truffle, candle wax and lemon curd. This elegantly structured wine has an impeccable balance of natural acidity, sugars and tannin and the palate has superb poise and intense flavour persistence BLANC DE BLANCS

Appearance: Light gold

Aroma: Lifted aromas of biscuit, brioche, grapefruit and butter mushroom sauté, along with complex and enticing nuances of sourdough, truffle, butter biscuit and fresh oyster

Flavour: The seamless palate is immensely fine with great length and flavour persistence ROSE

Appearance: Moderate salmon pink

Aroma: Enticing aromas of fresh red berry fruits, married to the complexity of extended tirage maturation, along with brioche-like yeast, nougat and exotic spices

Flavour: Bright, fresh strawberry fruit dominates the initial rush, which gives way to complex secondary characters of truffle and yeast extracts LATE DISGORGED

Appearance: Medium straw colour with a fresh golden hue

Aroma: The bouquet displays lifted nuances of brown lime, butter biscuit and oyster

Flavour: The palate reveals a complex flavour profile, exhibiting characters of honey, nougat, sourdough toast and truffle. A richly flavoured and intriguing palate, with a strong natural acid backbone, elegant structure and great persistence