Archived News
2009
2008
- The new Rough Cuttings is out.
- Wetlands Wins Channel 10/Telstra Environment Award
- 2008 VINTAGE WRAP UP - Melissa and Mike's impressions of the 08 vintage.
The annual Gemtree newsletter known as "Rough Cuttings" has been sent out with details of new releases, reviews and what kept us occupied in 07.
You can view Rough Cuttings by clicking here or ask us to send you a copy.
The Gemtree wetlands have been nominated as a weekly winner in the Channel 10/ Telstra Environment award based on a submission put forward by Greening Australia for the work we undertake with the community planting trees on Arbor Day.
The Channel 10 news will broadcast from the wetlands next week and include an interview with media favourite, our star viticulturist Melissa! The submission then passes to the 2007 Austrlaian of the Year and climate change crusader,Tim Flannery to judge the monthly winner.
From the Paddock
2008 will be a year to remember! It was the most compressed vintage I have ever experienced and full of surprises. The season brought weather conditions that were perfect for producing top quality fruit. Yields were looking promising and we approached vintage with high hopes and enthusiasm.
We picked our white grapes at a lower baume than usual as they displayed strong varietal character and crisp acidity.
Cool and dry conditions during berry ripening produced full flavoured fruit and red grapes accumulated great colour and phenolic development.
On the 3rd March a record breaking 15 day heat wave kicked in and revved us all into a frenzied pace of activity. We did our best to harvest our reds before they shriveled into oblivion. Fortunately, we have the infrastructure that meant we survived the 08 vintage relatively unscathed and have some fantastic parcels of fruit to work with.
Melissa Brown - Viticulturist
From the Shed
I returned from Australia Day tastings in London and Europe on the 3rd of February and we commenced picking on the 5th with our first tempranillo rose, a cracker indeed!!
The whites followed quickly after this and we had all our whites harvested by the 23rd of February which is extraordinarily early and consequently all the whites are fleshy, vibrant with amazing acidity. Highlights are 2008 Moonstone albariño and 2008 Citrine chardonnay.
We commenced harvesting the reds on the 28th February, 5 days before our record heat wave and as always we harvest our Obsidian blocks first. The base wines for Obsidian and Uncut that we have in barrel are as good as I have seen at Gemtree, so this means we have parcels that are up there with the awesome 1998 and 2001 vintages.
The reds are rich yet restrained which I put down to the cool ripening season and great natural acids. Tannin development was almost perfect and with great natural acid and tannin you are 9/10th's of the way there…..
I look forward to watching the wines evolve over the next 2 years and I will keep you posted on how the wines progress form here.
Highlights 2008 tempranillo, Obsidian and The Phantom petit verdot.
Vintage rating 8.5-9 /10.
Cheers,
Mike Brown - Winemaker
2007
- Latest Newsletter out.
- Whole swag of new Gemtree wines released
- Mike Brown to be ambassador of Aussie Shiraz
- Gemtree Wetlands wins Environment award.
- Mike Brown's Musings on Vintage 2007
- Melissa's Views on Vintage 2007
- USA Distributors Down Under
- Uncut Shiraz Vertical Tasting
- 2004 Gemtree White Lees Shiraz - Cellar Door Only Release - Total Production 239 Dozen
- Launch of new look Obsidian Shiraz
- Melissa Wins Top Grower Award!
- Gemtree appoints North American Brand Manager
- WINE OF THE YEAR - 2004 Obsidian Shiraz
- Moonstone Unveiled - the release of our first Biodynamic wine!
- Gemtree Scores 2 Wines in Halliday's Top 100!
The annual Gemtree newsletter known as "Rough Cuttings" has been sent out with details of new releases, reviews and all the goss from 2006.
You can view Rough Cuttings by clicking here or ask us to send you a copy.
We have just released the next instalments in our big adventure, some of which are already receiving accolades.
The new wines are: 2006 Citrine Chardonnay, 2005 Tatty Road, 2005 Uncut Shiraz, 2005 Cadenzia (Grenache/Tempranillo/Shiraz), 2005 Bloodstone Tempranillo, 2003 Obsidian Shiraz and the 2005 The Phantom Petit Verdot.
For more info and tasting notes click here. To order wine click here.
Global Positioning of Shiraz and Australia
As a passionate maker of Shiraz, Mike Brown has been invited to work with Paul Henry of Wine Australia, Matt Gant of St Hallett's and others to create a global leadership position for Australia with regard to the promotion of Shiraz/Syrah as a varietal through collaborative and comparative tasting and promotion.
Just as the French are known for Bordeaux and Burgundy, Mike is going to help to further cement Australia's connection with Shiraz through a series of tastings showcasing Shirazes from around the world.
The first is going to be held for wine trade, wine writers and consumers next February in London. The program will then be rolled out through Australia's key export markets.
It has been an exciting year in the Gemtree Wetlands with much achieved.
At a recent McLaren Vale Grape Wine and Tourism Association function we were proud to receive the SITA Viticulture Award for Environmental Innovation. The Award will provide $2000 funding to the Wetlands Project. The Association and SITA believe that the contribution our revegetation and wetland project has made to the McLaren Vale region and wine industry is significant and well deserving of such an award.
We received an award for Innovation because it goes beyond standard practice in the industry and sets a benchmark for other viticulture businesses considering conservation of our valuable natural assets.
We have just about finished vintage with only some Grenache to be picked. Drought conditions and the resulting low crops have meant that everything has been early.
The white varieties have been relatively unaffected by conditions due to good canopies, although crops are lower. The whites, particularly Chardonnay, had good natural acid and are juicier and fleshier than 2006 with more mid palate flavours.
I am very excited about our first harvest from the Tatachilla vineyard of Albarino, a Spanish white variety, although there is only a hatful. More next year!
Some of the reds suffered a bit from lack of canopy and the vines on hard soils struggled at the Tatachilla Road vineyard. We found some of the reds were reaching sugar sweetness but flavour was lagging and acids high, so we gave the vines a big drink to give them time to develop flavour and were rewarded with some great flavours, fleshy fruit and big masculine wines, particularly Shiraz.
It was clear early on this vintage that the reds had a lot of skin tannin so we decided to macerate and pump over the fermenting grapes less than most years to achieve balance.
Of the varieties Shiraz is looking like a good solid performer with some tremendous examples, as is Grenache, but Cabernet Sauvignon is very exciting with classic rich, cassis flavours and great generosity.
The Petit Verdot is like the great 2005 with black inky colours, vibrant cherry, violets and fantastic structure. Petit Verdot is often a challenge but tremendous this year.
Another highlight is the Tempranillo, a Spanish red variety, which was grown biodynamically this year. We then fermented it in open fermenters using natural wild yeasts. Tempranillo seems to have thrived in the drought conditions. Lovely juicy fruit.
Summing up it has been a tough year with severe drought, low crops and then a downpour in January causing some grapes in the region to split, but as ever McLaren Vale delivers a good solid result.
At Gemtree with our diverse vineyards we were able to get some outstanding parcels.
Yours with red stained hands and a smile on my face,
Mike Brown
It's been dry. It's been hot. It's been challenging and the vines have behaved accordingly. However, as usual, McLaren Vale has still delivered the goods in terms of quality.
Like most of Australia, the region was extremely dry in 2006 with exceptionally low winter rainfall of 60mm, and only 246 mm rainfall received by the end of September compared to the average annual rainfall of 550mm.
The very dry soil moisture conditions were compounded by the continuing unusually hot and dry conditions in Spring. The 4th October was the hottest start to the month on record, with a maximum of 35 degrees Celsius.
On the other hand, a positive aspect of these climatic conditions was that vines on naturally vigorous sites achieved better balance and there were very few pest and disease problems resulting in less chemical sprays, which we are always trying to minimize.
Soon after veraison, when the berries start softening and changing colour, we were all looking forward to some predicted rainfall to help the vines get through to harvest.
However, from the 19th to the 21st January the heavens opened and dumped 52mm of rain, which did more harm than good. Particularly on Shiraz blocks, causing the berries to split and then dry up and shrivel, reducing already low tonnages.
The harvest at Gemtree started on 5th February, a month earlier than usual, and just kept rolling without any breaks or interruption. Means Mike and I get to spend Easter with the kids.
The average maximum for February was 32.9 degrees Celsius, the highest in a century.
Due to the drought crop loads were well down on average. Some blocks were up to 70% less. The only varieties that yielded well were Chardonnay and Merlot.
We were pretty excited about the results of our biodynamic trials with the Tempranillo at the Gemtree vineyard and some Shiraz at the Tatachilla Road vineyard.
So keep an eye out for 2007 wines which will be pretty good but scarce. Anyway it will be time to start pruning soon and the prognosis is for more normal weather and rainfall.
What's normal these days?
In March this year Gemtree hosted two representatives from distributors in Minnesota and Texas as a thank you for their efforts in selling our wines and to educate them more about Gemtree and McLaren Vale.
Accompanied by Eymeric Darsch, the National Sales Manager for our importer Grape Expectations in the USA, the guys arrived in Sydney where we took them on a wild speedboat ride around of the harbour. The following day they arrived in McLaren Vale and set up base camp in the Gemtree 'Bed and Breakfast'. Andrew organized a gruelling six-day tour, encompassing kangaroo spotting at dusk, koala cuddling, a bi- plane flight over the region and slow wooden boat trip on the lower Murray River.
We also introduced the guys to a few local identities such as Chester Osborn, Doug Govan and Jock Harvey and got them involved in grading of our 07 vintage wines. Running around the vineyards with Melissa built hearty appetites and they got to sample the best our region has to offer at the Victory Hotel, Star of Greece and Salopian Inn - no one went home hungry!! A great time was had by all and we have some keen new members of the Gemtree and McLaren Vale fan club!
In March 2007, the Gemtree team, together with help from six other wine and food buffs, sat down to the first formal vertical tasting of our beloved Uncut Shiraz - the wine that launched our label back in 1998 and has since become synonymous with the Gemtree brand.
For those of you with some Uncut in the cellar, we've taken notes on each vintage, updated cellaring recommendations and offered ideal food matches as suggested by our guest chef. Scores were allocated by each individual, and at the end of the day the group was surprisingly unanimous in agreement on final rankings of each vintage. Click to view [Vertical Tasting Notes - Uncut Shiraz, March 2007].
At Gemtree we are always looking for ways in the vineyard and winery to improve quality and complexity in our wines whilst being true to the fruit and the McLaren Vale region. Thus we are often trying new techniques and experimenting with batches of grapes and wine. Sometimes it is a bit out there but we are willing to give it a go. It's all about innovation.
One day winemaker Mike Brown was emptying some freshly fermented white wine out of new French oak barrels. Left behind in the barrels were the remnants of yeast called 'lees'. Normally the lees are emptied out before the next wine is put in. Whilst rolling the first barrels to empty them, Mike happened to taste the lees in a tub and found they had extraordinary flavour. They were fluffy, crunchy, and looked very "alive" and healthy. 'How can I use these?' was his immediate thought. But he had no white wine in the cellar to add them to.
During vintage 2004 Mike had kept aside a small batch of Shiraz from 40 year old vines in the short rows at Gemtree's Tatachilla Road vineyard because he had not witnessed such amazing fruit expression since first taking the fruit in 1998. He decided to transfer this fascinating Shiraz into the French oak barrels on top of the white lees. Over 28 months the barrels of Shiraz were regularly stirred or 'batonaged' to mix in the lees. Mike's theory was that in rare times when lees are this balanced they can give amazing "complexing" properties to the wine. Dead yeast cells or "hulls" when re-suspended into a wine can increase mouth feel, complexity, help stabilise the wine and add incredible complexity. The white lees have acted as a preserving agent, protecting this wine from normal aging characteristics, hence the vibrancy and youth of the wine is quite remarkable.
The White Lees Shiraz displays bright purple hues with raspberry, currant, concentrated plum and violet aromas. The palate is literally an explosion of violets and concentrated plums. Powerful yet restrained.
Only 239 dozen of this innovative wine was made but it is sure to capture your imagination and beguile your senses.
Gemtree 2004 Obsidian Shiraz
The 2004 Obsidian Shiraz marks the beginning of a new era for Gemtree's flagship Shiraz.
Every year, since the first release of a reserve shiraz in 2001, winemaker Mike Brown has always selected the wine good enough to make the Obsidian grade, by barrel. We've now taken that back a step and in 2004, for the first time, this shiraz was hand selected out in the vineyard. In the weeks leading up to vintage, Mike and his wife, viticulturist, Melissa Brown regularly walk the rows of Gemtree's premium shiraz block, tasting berries and hand selecting down to individual row which fruit is given Obsidian status. After allowing this fruit to express itself for 3 years in new French oak, a final grading is undertaken so that ultimately only 1% of Gemtree's total shiraz production makes the cut.
As part of a regular review of our range, we felt that the timing was right to raise the profile of this product and set it apart from the rest of the Gemtree range. Our Gemtree customers are well on the way to understanding the philosophy and intention behind our premium wine and we wanted to further endorse this via a strong new label. Obsidian is the most powerful gemstone and Obsidian is our most powerful wine - we've sought to convey that power onto our new label.
Of the 620 dozen total production of this 2004 vintage, 100 dozen is under cork. We had abandoned natural cork altogether by the 2003 vintage as we'd experienced too many quality issues and disappointments with the cork previously available. However, Mike has found a family owned and operated cork producer from Spain with the same exceptional quality control and attention to detail that we demand of ourselves. Preliminary trials have been outstanding and so we're giving them a run this year to assess the natural evolution of 04 Obsidian under both closures.
Gemtree Obsidian Shiraz - a family treasure and indulgence.
Melissa Brown, Gemtree Vineyards' viticulturist, was recently awarded the prestigious annual trophy for Excellence in Winegrowing in McLaren Vale at the region's Annual Growers Dinner.
Melissa was selected from six finalists, all whom have implemented management practices to achieve sustained improvements in quality. The emphasis of this award is to recognise growers in the region who are lifting the standard of winegrape production in McLaren Vale thus adding value to the local industry.
In a big week for Melissa, she has also accepted, together with Greening Australia, a State Award in the 2007 Prime Minister's Awards for Excellence in Community Business Partnerships which recognises our work in creating a 'Forest for Frogs' and engaging the community in the environmental rehabilitation of the Gemtree wetlands.
We are excited to announce the appointment of Eymeric Darsch as Gemtree's roving brand ambassador in North America. Eymeric joins us with a great passion for Gemtree wines, given he's been selling our range for the past couple of years whilst working for our US importer as the National Sales Manager.
Eymeric is based in North Carolina and will travel extensively throughout the USA and Canada. We welcome him wholeheartledly onto the team.
Click here to view Eymeric's profile..
The Gemtree gang capped off an enormous week last Friday night with the announcement that the 2004 Obsidian Shiraz had won the professional judges Wine of The Year in the 2007 Hyatt/Advertiser Wine Awards. Held in the Hyatt ballroom, the black tie gala event was jam packed with serious players from within the South Australian wine industry. The night is summed up best by winemaker Mike Brown who 4 days later is just recovering!
"After being chosen as best shiraz by the judges, we tasted through the other varietal wines on the table as they were poured and I felt that the Obsidian was in the top 3 wines of the night - but it would depend on what the judges were looking for. Obsidian definitely was the biggest in the line up!!
When the award was announced it was such a buzz, to be chosen as the Wine of the Year given the quantity and quality of wines and the calibre of judges was surreal. A very nervous speech followed dedicating the award to the Buttery's 95 year old grandfather Ernest Rivers - who got the whole family involved in vineyards all those years ago. Upstairs to the bar for some French fizz and high fives with the family. Loads of fellow industry mates converged with hearty congrats and lots of "Is there any wine?" comments followed!!
We had to get home to the babysitters, so it was off back to the Vale with our ever reliable driver Kev, calling anyone who we thought would like to know. We woke up Jill and Paul, Pam and Noel Brown and Eymeric to share the news. The boys decided to head to Hindmarsh Island to share the joy with the directors of golf, arrival time = 2am. Three more bottles of fizz and a dent made in the Johnnie black label before the celebrations came to an end returning back to the Vale at a healthy 6am."
Gemtree's first 100% biodynamic wine - Moonstone Albarino has just been released. Viticulturist Melissa Brown began experimenting with biodynamics in the vineyard in 2006 and the results have been outstanding. So much so that nearly one third of the Gemtree estate is now being farmed using biodynamic principles.
Albarino is a Spanish variety from the picturesque coastal region of Galicia. Here, it enjoys warm days, cold nights and the maritime influence of the nearby Atlantic, perfect for retaining the natural acidity of the variety and very similar to McLaren Vale's climate.
Albarino grapes develop thick skins contributing to their intense aromas of apples,
peaches, pears and citrus. Winemaker Mike Brown likens Albarino to a hybrid of Riesling and Pinot Grigio due to its fragrant aromatics and wonderful acidity.
Mike says "We have left this wine as nature intended it, 100% natural fermentation, no additions and zero filtration."
Total production was 25 dozen and the wine is only available through Gemtree's cellar door.
Two of Gemtree's new release wines - the 2006 Uncut Shiraz and the 2006 Tatty Road Cabernet blend, have rated in James Halliday's listing of Australia's Top 100 Wines for 2007.
Halliday's comments for each wine were as follows;
2006 Tatty Road - 94 points
"Gemtree's red wines in the Top 100 were uniformly excellent. This blend of cabernet, petit verdot, merlot and cabernet franc, gorwn on red loam over limestone, was no exception, with a strikingly pure array of blackcurrant and red currant on a long silky palate."
2006 Uncut Shiraz - 95 points
"From 40-year-old vines, open-fermented, basket pressed and aged for 16 months in French and American oak. Deeply coloured, it has an opulent but not jammy bouquet and palate, with a range of blackberry, licorice and dark chocolate fruit supported by positive though not aggressive oak and ripe tannins."
2006
- Gemtree recently had three wines in the Advertiser Top 100
- The new cellar door at the Salopian Inn officially opened by Adam Spencer.
In the recent Australia's Top 100 Wines published by the Adelaide Advertiser Gemtree had three wines praised by the judges.
Following tough judging of hundreds of wines the 2006 Citrine Chardonnay, the 2004 Tatty Road and the 2005 Uncut Shiraz were given the big nod.
Here's what the judges said:
2006 Citrine Chardonnay:
Austere at first, you'd swear high altitudes made this almost-chablis McLaren Vale wonder. It's fresh and crunchy with cool fruit, a bit of honey dew here, lemon drop there, with crisp apple acids adding beautiful weight and structure. Crying out for richer white foods.
2004 Tatty Road:
Here's another foursome- a tad more cabernet than petit verdot, then cabernet franc and merlot - making a briary, oyster shell and soy savoury background for blueberries and cream flavours, vanillas and spearmints. Excellent length and most lovable and charming.
2005 Uncut Shiraz:
An awesome nose full of dark Christmas cake characters, this McLaren Vale beauty is very deep-scented, with huge mouthfuls of all imaginable shiraz berry and spice flavours under the sun. Rich and powerful.
Triple JJJ Radio DJ, comedian and ambassador of science, Adam Spencer opened the new cellar door of Dowie Doole Wines and Gemtree Vineyards at the Salopian Inn Friday 1st December.
100 guests were treated to his views on "Wine. Is it an art or science?" as well as hilarious tales of being a geek and a comedian. Guests enjoyed delightful regional treats from the Salopian Inn and wines from these two renowned, up and coming boutique wineries.
