Australia Landmark Tutorial: Seminar 9: Pinot Noir Blind Tasting presented by Tom Carson

It is no exaggeration to say that Pinot Noir has undergone a quality revolution in Australia in the last ten to fifteen years. This notoriously fickle grape, hard to cultivate and equally demanding to vinify, had previously not made much of a mark in Australia, apart from in the cases of a number of quality-minded producers mainly hailing from Victoria.

Tom Carson, formerly of the Yarra Valley’s Yering Station – the winery hosting the Landmark Tutorial – and the winemaker now responsible for the superlative wines of Yabby Lake (based in Mornington Peninsula) was more than well-placed to contextualize the development of Australian Pinot Noir in recent years. Carson has handled Pinot Noir not only for the production of reds with great varietal and regional typicity, but also, whilst at Yering Station, for the Yarrabank sparkling range.

Carson began by explaining how Pinot Noir came to Australia. James Busby, well-known for introducing Shiraz to the country in the 19th Century, derived his vine material from Hermitage. Less well-documented is that Busby also carried cuttings of Pinot Noir taken from the Clos de Vougeot in December 1831. MV6 (Mother Vine 6) subsequently became established in Australia and is still one of the most planted clones.

Despite the considerable progress made with the varietal since the mid-1990s, Carson pointed out that, for Australia, availability of a variety of clones is a relatively recent affair. Clones newer to Australia, such as the Dijon clones 115, 667, 777 and Abel, have, by contrast, been around in New Zealand for the last decade (Carson alluded to Kiwi producer Ata Rangi being well-stocked with Abel in particular).

The Dijon clones, Carson explained, tend to be earlier picking than MV6; and, planted in the Yarra Valley or Mornington Peninsula at different orientations and altitudes, are liable to give makers of Pinot a much wider palette from which to draw than hitherto.  Combined with higher planting densities and the aim of bringing yields down to 1 kg fruit per vine (that’s about 1 bottle of wine per vine), the future certainly looks bright for  premium Pinot Noir from Victoria and Tasmania especially.

Personally, I detected a considerable quality difference between the more recent expressions of the grape tasted in this session, compared with some of the slightly older examples on offer, some of which were not showing especially well. Having said that, some of the stand-out wines at this tasting were actually from the 1997 vintage, deriving from producers with a considerable track record for quality: witness the quartet of 1997 Mount Mary Yarra Valley Pinot Noir, 1997 Bannockburn Serré Pinot Noir, Geelong, 1997 Bindi Original Pinot Noir, Macedon Ranges, and 1997 Coldstream Hills Reserve Pinot Noir, Yarra Valley

By contrast, in a strange stage of evolution, perhaps, were the trio of 2002 Paringa Estate Pinot Noir, Mornington Peninsula, 2002 Bass Phillip Premium Pinot Noir, Gippsland and 2001 Freycinet Vineyard Pinot Noir, Tasmania. This was surprising given how very good all of these producers can be (as Fongyee and I witnessed firsthand on side-visits to Paringa Estate and Freycinet). Bass Phillip, one of the best Pinot producers in Australia, was clearly having an off-day with the above 2002; although the adage that there are no great wines but only great bottles is possibly moot.

Among the younger wines, the trio of 2008 Stefano Lubiana Estate Pinot Noir, Tasmania, 2008 Curly Flat Pinot Noir, Macedon Ranges, and 2008 Yabby Lake Block 2 Pinot Noir, Mornington Peninsula was superb. Stefano Lubiana especially produces plush Pinot Noir with very complex structures and superb balance. Although tasted blind, it was nonetheless a recognizable and without doubt very attractive style.

Gone are the days, certainly, of Australian Pinot appearing overblown, heady in alcohol with over-ripe, blousy fruit and not enough supporting acidity. We can expect great things from Australia’s Pinot Noir purists, the fruits of whose labours are already appearing. Although not represented in the Tutorial, Mooruduc, of Mornington Peninsula, is another very high quality source.

The stand-out wines here were: 2008 Farr Rising Geelong Pinot Noir, 2008 Stefano Lubiana Estate Pinot Noir, Tasmania, 2008 Curly Flat Pinot Noir, Macedon Ranges, 2008 Yabby Lake Block 2 Pinot Noir, Mornington Peninsula, 1997 Mount Mary Yarra Valley Pinot Noir, 1997 Bannockburn Serré Pinot Noir, Geelong, 1997 Bindi Original Pinot Noir, Macedon Ranges, 1997 Coldstream Hills Reserve Pinot Noir, Yarra Valley

Editor’s note: This is an ongoing 13-part series of Edward Ragg’s account of Australia’s 2010 Landmark Tutorial. Each week, Edward will give us an insider’s view of the program. Join us next week for the ‘Single Vineyards and Sacred Sites versus Blends’.

Photo credit: Landmark Australia