Château de Pommard Volnay 2017

Margaret River, Australia

This is a complex wine with aromas of black berry fruits, chocolate and cedar with briary highlights. On the palate it has layers of interest starting with rich dark berry fruit flavours, deft oak treatment and plush tannins. It is ready to drink and will age beautifully over the long term.

This fruit was hand harvested in late March in a selection of our vineyards; the majority was from the Wilyabrup sub-region and there was a parcel from Carbunup. The wine was aged in French oak barriques, 30 per cent new, for 15 months.

The 2010 vintage will be long remembered as a uniquely demanding year. Mother Nature was capricious and challenging in presenting us with tremendous variability – unseasonably cold days, untimely rainfall, and surprisingly sunny and hot days. While colder than normal, the leaves were able to produce the needed sugar, while the grape berries developed lovely and complex flavor and aroma components. Bud break and flowering were eight days later than the 5-year average. Unexpectedly high temperatures in late August and September allowed the vines to finish the growing season very well. Having left the sufficient number of leaves on the vines so as to have a full canopy, our grapes avoided possible sunburn from this late season heat. The success of the 2010 harvest was assured when we correctly assessed the early maturity of the grapes and had the confidence to pick at the first sight of ripeness. Harvest began on September 23 and succinctly concluded thirty-one days later on October 23.

Aromas of fresh blackberry, rose petals, chocolate and espresso accentuate a profound tapestry of fruity and earthy nuances. Round velvety tannins enrobe a silky texture with a slight touch of minerality. The flavors of dark fruit are enhanced by the well-integrated acidity. The acidity and tannin structure promise a very long life ahead for this wine.

Varietal : Cabernet Sauvignon 84%, Merlot 5.5%, Cabernet Franc 5.5%, Petit Verdot 4% and Malbec 1%