Cachette

Price: $95 per bottle

Destemmed: No. 100% whole bunch pressed Fermentation Vessel: French oak barrels. Fermentation: Combination of indigenous and selected strains. 50% MLF Press: Pneumatic horizontal press Maturation: French oak 40% new. 10 months on lees with regular stirring. Fining: Minimal to retain concentration and texture

Cheese soufflé, Creamy chicken Vol-au-Vent, Crayfish tails with garlic butter, Smoked fish pie, Caviar

A dry winter made pruning enjoyable and as such we were finished in record time. Late August brought with it a wet spell which replenished ground moisture prior to the season. Budburst was nearly 2 weeks ahead of normal, starting as usual in the Chardonnay in early September.

A settled spring brought with it a good fruit set, the odd Southwesterly kept the crop loads in check. Dry warm weather through to mid January set us up with some very healthy fruit. The season did a bit of an about face in February and turned wetter and cooler than we are used to.

The majority of the work had already been done as we guided the crop to harvest by strategically hanging out individual parcels to gain optimum ripeness. The resultant wines are rich and plush with great presence and length.

Price: $95 per bottle

Whole bunch pressed and fermented in French oak using a combination of indigenous and selected yeasts. Matured in French oak (30% new) for 8 months. Fined with bentonite and isinglass.

Cheese soufflé, Creamy chicken Vol-au-Vent, Crayfish tails with garlic butter, Smoked fish pie, Caviar

An early spring with warmer than average temperatures brought us a very even bud burst and good fruit set. A series of northerly storms brought above average rainfall and high humidity, creating plenty of challenges in the vineyards, however the overall heat summation was well above our yearly average providing ripe and concentrated fruit.

Price: $115 per bottle

Destemmed: No. 100% whole bunch pressed Fermentation Vessel: French oak barrels. Fermentation: Combination of indigenous and selected strains. 40% MLF Press: Traditional Basket Maturation: French oak 40% new. 10 months on lees with regular stirring. Fining: Minimal to retain concentration and texture

Cheese soufflé, Creamy chicken Vol-au-Vent, Crayfish tails with garlic butter, Smoked fish pie, Caviar

A warm settled spring provided the backdrop and a very hot and dry November and December really set us up for another promising vintage. 24 days over 30C during the growing season and a combined December/January maximum average temperature of 28.6C gave us the heat summation to advance ripening nicely.

Veraison was very compressed and passed through in around 2 weeks by Jan 20th instead of the usual 4 weeks. February brought the rains, but due to the constant and meticulous work of our vineyard team the fruit was in great shape. Continuous rounds of canopy detailing kept the fruit hanging freely and quick drying.

All of this work paid off as March brought dryer conditions and harvest approached. Selectively picking when the fruit reached optimum condition and many small batch ferments allowing individual attention and precision in the winery.

The resultant wines like the vintage are filled with tension and poise. Supple and long they will age well and deliver an ever evolving experience over many years.

Price: $105 per bottle

Whole bunch pressed in a vertical basket press and slowly fermented in French oak using a combination of indigenous and selected yeasts with sequential inoculations. Matured in 225 liters barriques (40% new) for 10 months with partial malolactic fermentation. Regular battonage and minimal fining to retain concentration and texture.

Pumpkin and parmesan arancinis, Garlic herb butter roast chicken, Brown butter risotto with lobster, Pappardelle with candied chestnuts and quail eggs, Caviar.

Warm breezy days, calm nights and the odd refreshing shower were the hallmarks of spring this growing season. This allowed an abundant friuit-set which our team then set about sculpting into perfect balance. Summer was kind with lots of sunshine, above average daytime temperatures and 22 days over 30C during the growing season. Free draining North facing sites allowed us to capture all that sun while shedding the little rain that fell. The beautifully separated bunches ripened fully and harvest began earlier than usual. All varietals across the vintage period were picked in optimal condition leading to much jubilation in the winery. The resultant wines are showing great concentration, power and elegance even at this very early stage. Wines approachable in their youth but destined to age for decades.

Price: $105 per bottle

Whole bunches were very slowly pressed in a vertical basket with no sulphur added. Racked to premium oak, with staves from the prestigious Tronçais forest. Fermented by a combination of indigenous and selected yeasts and bacterias with sequential inoculations. Matured in 225 litre barriques (40% new) for twelve months with partial malolactic fermentation. Regular bâttonage and minimal fining to retain concentration and texture.

Brown butter seared scallops with sunchoke purée, grilled summer vegetables with hollandaise, puff pastry smoked salmon and dill crème fraîche, baked Camembert with wildflower honey

Warm settled weather in spring provided an early bud burst and a compressed flowering and resultant fruit-set. Canopies were meticulously nurtured with laterals thinned by hand. After fruit-set we followed up with detailed leaf removal around the fruit zone, allowing the fruit to make the most of the abundant sunshine. December and January were some of the driest months on record, assisting with veraison to begin at least ten days earlier than usual. There was a meagre 243mm of rainfall in the growing season, the driest in ten years. This coupled with warm summer days, cool nights, and light maritime breezes helped to provide wines which are rich, ripe, opulent yet refined.