Winemaker Notes
The Grampians is about two-and-a-half hours west of Melbourne, the base of a mountain range that runs 2,000 miles up Australia’s east coast. Australia has a long heritage of Italian influence, notably boosted by post-WWII immigration. It was the Italians who brought us the espresso machine and a love of table wines. We pay homage to their influence by drinking their Tuscan mainstay. This is another single vineyard, with vine age 22 yeas.
Among Italy's elite red grape varieties, Sangiovese has the perfect intersection of bright red fruit and savory earthiness and is responsible for the best red wines of Tuscany. While it is best known as the chief component of Chianti, it is also the main grape in Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and reaches the height of its power and intensity in the complex, long-lived Brunello di Montalcino. Somm Secret—Sangiovese doubles under the alias, Nielluccio, on the French island of Corsica where it produces distinctly floral and refreshing reds and rosés.
Nestled into the tip of its southeastern coastline, Victoria is Australia’s smallest mainland state, second most populous and third largest wine producer. Victoria includes the cool regions of Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula and Geelong, made famous mainly by impressive Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
The more inland Heathcote and Bendigo lead the way for complex and textured, full-bodied reds. Rutherglen’s fortified wines compete among the best on the planet.