Nature is a fickle beast
Farming and grape growing is fraught with challenges that can bring highs and lows due to the vagaries of our weather. Nature is a fickle beast and can turn quickly to deliver hope or despair.
The despair came last year when we decided not to proceed with the 2020 vintage due to the probability of smoke taint from bushfires that ravaged our countryside. This is the first time I have missed a vintage since the establishment of Giaconda. As a consequence this is an important release from the 2019 vintage. It will be a balancing act as a small portion of these wines will need to be kept back for re-release next year, in addition to a limited quantity of older bottles and magnums from our temperature controlled museum cellar.
However let's not dwell on negatives. We are incredibly excited to present the 2019 releases; a beautiful vintage that has delivered wines of depth and quality. As usual I expect the wines to sell out quickly so don't delay your orders. You can view details of these wines in the tasting notes below and I would hasten to add that this current release is a very strong set of wines – a powerful and mineral chardonnay and complex reds that will benefit from ageing. If trying the red wines early please decant and allow plenty of air to unravel their hidden charms. This is especially true of the pinot noir.
I must mention a special note on the 2017 Nebbiolo, which I believe breaks new ground for us and indeed Australian nebbiolo in general. This wine displays extreme power, depth and finesse. There is no doubt that this is the finest release from our relatively new vineyard site at Red Hill in Beechworth. After 10 years these vines are certainly beginning to hit their straps. I've tasted this wine beside several notable Barolos and it always holds its own at half the price!
I have had a few inspirational ideas on how to progress the wines, more on this next year except I can reveal one piece of news - Roussanne.
Over the years I have had many of you comment on how they wish we still made our "Aeolia" barrel fermented, full and complex Roussanne. This is going to become a reality with 7 barrels now fermenting in the cave to be released next year - more news on this in April 2022. Meanwhile the Amphora skin-contact version is also continuing.
View release details and tasting notes >
Sincerely,
Rick Kinzbrunner
Beechworth's Granite Cave
18 September 2013The granite cellar at Giaconda Vineyard is the latest project of exceptional winemaker, Rick Kinzbrunner. Nick Stock travels to Beechworth in search of chardonnay, a granite cave and a vision for the future of Giaconda.
Rick Kinzbrunner has an enigmatic presence. Tall, slim and considered, he also has a reputation as a bit of a recluse. It may seem unsurprising then that his latest construct at his Giaconda property in Victoria’s Beechworth, happens to be a cave.
“My goal was always to grow the wine in granite soil,” Kinzbrunner says of his newest cellar, drilled and blasted into the granite rock at Giaconda. For him, it is the last link in the chain of a terroir to which he is deeply endeared: vines grow in granite, their grapes fermented and matured in a granite cellar.
Underground, the physical conditions are vastly better for wine maturation than the previous above ground facilities. Naturally cooled, the air is humid and alcohol is more likely to lower over time in this high humidity than concentrate in the arid, evaporative environment up on the surface.
Kinzbrunner calculates that there will be an average nett loss of around 0.5% in finished alcohol in wines made in the cave rather than a gain of around 0.5% in above ground conditions. This means he is able to deliver full, rich and powerful chardonnay at levels of around 13% alcohol by volume, instead of the previous norm that fell around 14% and without employing mech-anical climate control.
“I’ve stuck to my guns, refined my style and the wines I’m making now are the result. It’s the traditional stuff that’s probably closer to what they were doing hundreds of years ago rather than what many people are doing now.” RK
He has seen instant results in terms of refining wine style and quality. The first wine to emerge having been totally vinified inside the granite cave is the 2010 Giaconda Chardonnay and if this wine is anything to go by, the assessment is accurate.
Kinzbrunner is not prone to exaggeration and as one of Australia’s most capable and experienced winemakers; he has little need to stretch the truth. “It’s the first wine I’ve made that I’ve been truly happy with,” he says, “the culmination of everything I’ve tried to do and wanted to achieve.” The 2010 chardonnay is easily the best rendition of his signature white wine to date and the 2011 is developing handsomely in its shadow.
The inspiration for the cave project stems from Kinzbrunner’s time working in California. However, the impetus to embark on its construction is born of his regard for the granite terroir at Giaconda and the desire to chase down the very best and most unique quality in the wines grown and made there. His focus in terms of winemaking is both narrowing and deepening.
Nick Stock, Alquimie, Edition One