Rick's Newsletter

Commentary

Back to the future for Giaconda's Pinot Noir

A decade or so ago Rick Kinzbrunner was dismayed at the quality of the pinot noir he was producing from his Giaconda vineyard near Beechworth. So dismayed that this figurehead of the Beechworth wine industry actually made several pinots between 2008 and 2012 in which Yarra Valley fruit from the Toolangi Vineyard (for whom he makes its Reserve Chardonnay) was the dominant fraction. This despite the still memorable qualities of estate-grown pinot noir vintages such as 1989, 1991 and 1992, not to mention the first-ever Giaconda wine I tasted, the 1988. I remember this wine as if I tasted it an hour ago. I was with my father, who was equally seduced, and I was immediately convinced Kinzbrunner was a genius.

I’ve just had rather a profound flashback to that very moment, 25 years or so ago. Why? I ripped the top from the 2013 Giaconda Pinot Noir, a wine that is again 100% estate-grown but which is taken from relatively recent plantings at a significantly higher  – and therefore cooler – location at the Giaconda site. Here’s a truly stellar pinot noir, but one that talks its site as much as its variety. Having followed the 1989 very closely – and this is the vintage the 2013 most resembles – I speak with genuine confidence that this wine will age superbly, for the long term. It will become more complex and ethereal – which it is already to an extent – and will become firstly more powerful and then more delicate. It will remain elegant and savoury, will retain its effortless natural balance and freshness, and will please many a Burgundian collector, not just because it will age into something more Burgundian than many a Burgundy.

If you have the chance to taste this wine, do so. It has an Old Worldliness and a reserve that takes my breath away. For me it ticks the most important boxes: it’s about the place, the vintage and the maker. And most importantly, no other maker in the world could have created it. I hope Kinzbrunner is as satisfied as I am with his latest creation.

Jeremy Oliver
https://www.jeremyoliver.com

Chardonnay: The world's best (outside Burgundy)

Aside from Chablis, Meursault or Montrachet, which of the world’s leading Chardonnay regions would you turn to, and what are the top wines from each? In a landmark tasting, Stephen Brook heads up an expert panel to find out – and the results may surprise you.

Outstanding wines - Giaconda, Beechworth, Victoria, Australia 2011

A mix of fruit and bacon on the nose with well-judged ripeness. Rich, full-bodied, very ripe and toasty palate – a full-throttle style with power and a good deal of oak, yet it has a lemony freshness and lovely balance.

After a decade studying and working in California, Rick Kinzbrunner returned to his native Australia to seek out the right spot to plant a vineyard. He found it in the remote Beechworth area in northern Victoria, where Brown Brothers had planted many of its vineyards. He liked the clay and gravel soils, especially a sector with significant content of decomposed granite and quartz. From 1982 he planted an old Penfolds clone of Chardonnay with small berries at a high-lying, south-facing site. He was soon making a wine that was widely regarded as one of Australia’s finest. Barrel-fermented, it goes through full malolactic fermentation. Although Kinzbrunner only uses one-third new oak, the wine usually comes over as toasty and powerful, even though he does his best to reduce those characters by ageing the wine in his cool, underground cellar for up to 22 months. This 2011 was acclaimed with even more than the usual enthusiasm by the Australian wine press, and with good reason.

Read more - 2011 Estate Vineyard Chardonnay >

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Stockists

  • Beechworth Provender
    18 Camp Street
    Beechworth VIC 3747
    (03) 5728 2650
  • Cellar Door Wine Store
    62 Ford Street
    Beechworth VIC 3747
    (03) 5728 2882
  • Provenance Restaurant
    86 Ford Street
    Beechworth VIC 3747
    (03) 5728 1786
  • Armadale Cellars
    813-817 High Street
    Armadale VIC 3143
    03 9509 3055
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    1030 Burke Road
    Balwyn VIC 3103
    03 9817 2257
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    321 Lygon Street
    Carlton VIC 3053
    03 9347 7379
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    Cnr Toorak Rd And River Street
    South Yarra VIC 3141
    03 9827 0934
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    1 Marine Parade
    Abbotsford VIC 3067
    03 9419 6990
  • Nicks Wine Merchants
    10-12 Jackson Court
    East Doncaster VIC 3109
    03 9822 9100
  • Prince Wine Store
    177 Bank Street
    South Melbourne VIC 3205
    03 9686 3033
  • Rathdowne Cellars
    348 Rathdowne Street
    Carlton North VIC 3054
    03 9349 3366
  • City Wine Store
    161 Spring Street
    Melbourne VIC 3000
    03 9654 0811
  • The Winestar Centre
    13 Mcgregors Drive
    Keilor Park VIC 3042
    03 9261 4444
  • Wine House
    133 Queensbridge Street
    Southbank VIC 3006
    03 9698 8000
  • Five Way Cellars
    4 Heeley Street
    Paddington NSW 2021
    02 9360 4242
  • Langton's Brokerage
    Level 1, 26 Waterloo Street
    Surry Hills NSW 2010
    02 8507 2662
  • Summer Hill Wine Store
    7 Lackey Street
    Summer Hill NSW 2130
    02 9798 7282
  • United Cellars
    179-181 Palmer Street
    Darlinghurst NSW 2010
    02 8915 5300
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  • The Wine Emporium
    Tenancy E2, Gasworks 76B, Skyring Terrace
    Newstead QLD 4006
    07 3252 1117
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    Unit 3 - 276 Abbotsford Road
    Bowen Hills QLD 4006
    07 3852 1891
  • Australian Wine Centre
    4 Truro Avenue
    Kingswood SA 5062
    08 8272 7248
  • East End Cellars
    25 Vardon Avenue
    Adelaide SA 5000
    08 8232 5300
  • Edinburgh Cellars
    1-7 High Street
    Mitcham SA 5062
    08 8373 2753
  • Steves Fine Wine and Food
    30 The Avenue
    Nedlands WA 6009
    08 9386 3336