By David Ellis from vintnews
Despite its enormous popularity in other parts of the world as one of the most food-friendly of wines, Gruner Veltliner has only been made in this country since 2009, Lark Hill pioneering it in the Canberra District that year, and twelve months later Hahndorf Hill Winery releasing South Australia’s first-ever.
Since then around a dozen others have followed with plantings and releases of this wine, whose largest producing country is Austria followed by Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and to a far-lesser degree a number of regions in the USA.
Hahndorf Hill is the major player in Australia, its Larry Jacobs a master in coaxing the best from the grape into the bottle – so much so that Austria's leading wine magazine recently hailed his 2012 as “the best Gruner Veltliner outside Austria.”
Larry’s latest release, from the 2014 vintage is another ripper drop that could probably best be described as akin to the finest Sauvignon Blancs, and with this one having a wonderfully full forward-palate that erupts with citrus, stone fruit and spice.
Pay $28 and see why the variety’s regarded so highly in other parts of the world for its food-friendliness: it’s a marvellous match with anything from white meats (think pan-fried pork chops with plum sauce) to spicy Asian, seafoods and vegetarian.
One to note: A 2013 Pinot Noir out of Domaine Chandon’s vineyards in Victoria’s Yarra Valley shows just how well this variety does in cool climates, and additionally in this case with the winemaking team able to go beyond the norm to get added flavour nuances by sourcing fruit from vines over a range of elevations from 80 metres to 400 metres above sea level.
The result is a wine with terrific varietal aromas and a generous and complex palate – dark plums and raspberries come to the fore and are complemented by nicely gentle tannins. Pay $30.95 and take it along to your favourite Chinese eatery to enjoy with Peking Duck.
