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Red WineScribe Winery produces vibrant, terroir-driven wines from Sonoma, California. The winery was founded in 2007 on a property that helped pioneer pre-prohibition Sonoma Valley wine-making and is managed by fourth-generation California farmers and brothers, Andrew and Adam Mariani.
A wonderful expression of California’s historic Mission variety, with wild notes of rosehip, rhubarb and delicate mint and bright, spicy black fruit enveloping a textured palate.
This legendary dry Riesling from Jim Barry has matured under optimum conditions and displays the complexities that fine Australian Riesling develops over time.
The Florita Story
This story is best told by famous Australian wine writer, Huon Hooke and head of the Barry Family, Peter Barry who below tell the wonderful story of Florita…..
It starts in 1946, just after the war, when Leo Buring bought land at Watervale and planted Pedro ximénez for sherry – the preferred wine of Australians at the time. He named the vineyard Florita, which is Spanish for ‘little flower’ – a reference to the sherry flor (or flower), the film of yeast that covers the dry flor sherry as it matures in its ullaged casks. Public tastes shifted, table wine became fashionable, and in 1962 Buring’s winemaker John Vickery began to remove Pedro and plant riesling. “He started to make riesling (wine), which began to be seen as the future of Australian white wine,” says Barry. Indeed, Vickery and the Leo Buring brand became almost synonymous with riesling. “In 1986 Philip Morris (the tobacco company which owned the Leo Buring brand at the time) had six years supply of riesling in its cellars, and no-one was drinking it – chardonnay was the new fashion. They decided to sell the Florita vineyard.
My brothers and I went to the auction. I was 24. Mum said ‘You’re not allowed to buy it’. She said we already had plenty of vineyards. We told Dad he’d better buy it, and that would let us off the hook.
Southcorp (the precursor of Treasury Wine Group) owned the Florita trademark at the time, and although the Barrys began using the grapes immediately, they couldn’t use the name.
“I had to wait eight years until the registration period was up, but then Southcorp renewed it for another 10 years, so I had to wait 18 years all told, and I registered the name Florita two days after it lapsed.
Eighteen years is a long time to wait for a drink.”
The vineyard name originates from the surrounding water bodies – the dams which flank the block on all sides.
Its greater exposure to the north, west and east limits the vigour of the vines, while the sandier soil reduces water stress compared to Ferrous and Haven. These factors combine to make the wine silken, perfumed and approachable when young, as well as having flavour concentration and ageing potential. This 2011 is full of life with red cherry, redcurrant, alluring rose petal and savoury notes dominating the nose and palate. The tannins have softened over the years but are fine and silky.
Kooyong’s Haven Pinot Noir is a great Pinot Noir and exceptional with a few years of age
Almost indistinguishable from a Premier Cru Vosne Romanée, this gradually uncurls with swirling to reveal focused spicy, smokey, gamey aromas, permeate in the mouth with hints of anise and heather over succulent black cherry fruit. Well-structured, with richness and a warm, enveloping texture.
Planted exclusively to Pinot Noir, the Haven Vineyard is the most sheltered site, being bordered by trees on both the North and South, hence the vineyard name. The soil is loam over clay, with less sand than Meres and fewer sandstone pebbles than Ferrous.
The 1999 vintage 21-Year-Old Para Tawny is proudly a single vintage fortified wine, whereby parcels have been matured in old oak hogsheads. Brandy spirit has been used as the fortification element, which along with extensive oxidative ageing, gives rise to roasted nut, praline and butterscotch aromas and flavours. A fine example of single vintage Tawny from extended barrel maturation, lifted, fresh & elegant.
The friendship between Ernst Loosen, of the Dr. Loosen Estate in Germany, and Peter Barry, of Jim Barry Wines, Australia, began in 1995 at the London Wine Fair. Forged out of mutual respect for the noble variety Riesling, this collaboration of ideas pays homage to the wine making techniques used by the Loosen family for generations, and the vineyard practices of the Barry family.
The German-style Riesling made in Australia is called Wolta Wolta, (Aboriginal for ‘good water’) in honour of one the Barry family’s most significant and successful land purchases, which later became known as Lodge Hill. The Australian-style Riesling, made with grapes from the Erdener Treppchen Vineyard in Germany, is called Walhalla, (pronounced Valhalla) named after the majestic hall ruled over by Odin in Norse mythology.
It was no simple task for an Australian winemaker to make a German-style Riesling and vice versa, but when each winemaker can draw on forty years of experience of their counterpart, the possibilities are genuinely intriguing, and even though Peter and Tom Barry were uncertain they could make such a different style of Riesling, they were delighted with the outcome.
This project is not about sales. This is a project of passion, designed to test the skills, explore the possibilities, and hopefully, get people thinking about Riesling in a different way.
If this lunch or dinner is a special occasion then look no further! The soils of the Gimblett Gravels Vineyard impart a finely textured mineral quality into the finished wine, unique to Chardonnay made from this region. Traditionally made from a single Chardonnay block planted with a variety of clones, “Les Beaux Cailloux” represents the ultimate expression of winemaking art. Finely flavoured, complex and tautly structured. After 12 years in bottle this wine is at its peak and truly magnificent as well as being incredibly rare.
This outstanding Syrah, one of South Africa’s best, is part of a range of wines called Deconstructed which winemaker Richard Kershaw created to show the world-class vineyards of Elgin and the differences between vineyards and clones in the region.
Sourced from a single parcel in the western part of Elgin, the 22 clone produces fuller, well-coloured yet finely structured wines. They tend to be more concentrated as yields are low with more black fruit, black pepper and meaty notes. The Cartref soils, a mixture of decomposed granite, pebbles and quartz, add gracefulness and heighten the fruit intensity.
Only 552 bottles were produced.
This outstanding Syrah, one of South Africa’s best, is part of a range of wines called Deconstructed which winemaker Richard Kershaw created to show the world-class vineyards of Elgin and the differences between vineyards and clones in the region.
Sourced from a single parcel in the western part of Elgin the 9c clone when planted in cooler areas is known to produce wines that are well-scented, delicately balanced and savoury. They are medium in weight resonating elegance, finesse of tannin, and purity of fruit, the flavours revealing more white pepper, violet/lavender, Victoria plum and iodine. They tend to exude freshness and energy with lively acidity giving precision to the wine. The Cartref soils, a mixture of decomposed granite, pebbles and quartz, add gracefulness and heighten the fruit intensity.
Only 598 bottles were produced.
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Charlie Melton uses the traditional Australian technique for their sparkling red, as pioneered by Seppelts at Great Western. The base wine is aged for around two years or so in oak and then tirage bottled and left on lees for up to four years. This gives a complex aromatic of fruit sweetness and classic autolysis character and fine bubble. An important factor is the liquering dosage as this degree of sweetness ensures they will develop for decades.
This 2002 Sparkling red was disgorged in August 2005 so has had a further 16 years in bottle. It is an incredible bottle of wine and still has decades to go! Rich black cherry and plum on the nose with a delightful charry element. It has a fine mousse with powerful red and black fruits. Spicy, dense with a beguiling sweetness. It has a tight, dense core of rich fruit. Off-dry and has fabulous intensity and complexity. Fabulous!
We are delighted to have secured a small parcel of these truly iconic wines.
This Sparkling Shiraz is widely considered to be the benchmark of Australian Sparkling Shiraz. This traditional method of bubbly has spent 9 months ageing on its lees.
It is a wonderfully elegant sparkling red wine packed with juicy blackberry and black plum fruit, refreshing acidity and a tiny touch of balancing sweetness. The delicate, soft tannins add structure whilst the finish is lifted by the smooth, lively mousse.
*2023 Disgorgement*
This wonderful aged Ermitage Les Dionnieres is made from 100% Syrah grapes from vines with an average age of 35 years planted on south-facing slopes. Like the Meal, this wine is aged in barrel for 14 to 18 months, though the proportion of new barrels varies from 20% to 30% each year. A complex nose with aromas of violets, small red berries, spices and liquorice is matched on the palate, which is full-bodied, elegant and with a long endnote.
The ‘Single Vineyard’ Pinot Noir wines of Mt Difficulty rival the ‘Block’ wines of Felton Road as the most highly-regarded of Central Otago. They join an elite band of superb, terroir-driven releases of Pinot Noir from New Zealand that are demanding a place alongside fine Burgundy wine. The ‘Single Vineyard’ wines are only made when the character of the vineyard site can be expressed faithfully with accompanying exceptional quality. ]
This 2009 Packspur is a very elegant Pinot with a beautiful perfume of velvety, raspberry/ cranberry notes; adding complexity and intrigue are clove and anise spice. Rich, full, red fruit of the forest palate entry leads into a well-textured lush midpalate. Finally, lovely finely structured tannins round out this dense and concentrated wine.
The grapes for the wines that carry the Mt Difficulty label have traditionally been sourced from vineyards situated on the Southside of the Kawarau River at Bannockburn. The Growers Series is a recent addition to the Mt Difficulty portfolio, allowing us to showcase the terroir of different sub-regions. Packspur Vineyard is situated on Heany Road in Lowburn, on the northern side of Cromwell (as opposed to Bannockburn to the South). The vineyard takes its name from the track that was used to pack supplies over the Pisa Range, from the Lowburn Valley to the gold fields of the Cardrona Valley. The vineyard irrigation is a miners’ water right from 1863.
