Royal Adelaide Wine Show winners announced

Posted on October 10, 2022 by The Wine Commander

Boutique wine producers have taken home many of the gongs at South Australia’s annual wine show with a small Clare Valley winery, established less than 20 years ago, claiming one of the most prestigious trophies.

Naked Run Wines won the Gramp, Hardy, Hill Smith Prize for National White Wine of Provenance for the 2022, 2015 and 2012 vintages of The First Riesling, made from single vineyard fruit grown at Sevenhill.

The Max Schubert AM Trophy for Most Outstanding Red Wine in Show was won by another boutique producer, Sutton Grange Winery from Central Victoria, for their Sutton Grange Estate Syrah 2019. They also won the Best Shiraz and Best Shiraz 2019 and Older trophies.

The Red Wine of Provenance trophy was won by wine industry legend, Hardy’s, for the 2020, 2014 and 2008 vintages of their Eileen Hardy Shiraz.

The George Fairbrother Memorial Trophy for Most Outstanding White Wine in Show was won by Penfold’s for their Penfold’s Bin A Chardonnay 2021. They also took home the Governor’s Trophy for Best South Australian White Wine in Show and Best Chardonnay in Show.

Hentley Farm won the Governor’s Trophy for Best South Australian Red Wine in Show with their The Stray Grenache Shiraz 2021, as well as the Best Other Red Blend in Show title.

For gin drinkers The Champion Spirit of Show trophy was won by Prohibition Liquor Co for their Juniperus Gin.

The full list of winning wines

THE GOVERNOR’S TROPHY for BEST SOUTH AUSTRALIAN WHITE WINE IN SHOW
Won by – Penfolds Wines – Bin A Chardonnay 2021

THE GOVERNOR’S TROPHY for BEST SOUTH AUSTRALIAN RED WINE IN SHOW
Won by – Hentley Farm – The Stray Grenache Shiraz 2021

THE TAFE SA TROPHY for CHAMPION SPIRIT OF SHOW
Won by – Prohibition Liquor Co Juniperus Gin

THE GEORGE FAIRBROTHER MEMORIAL TROPHY for MOST OUTSTANDING WHITE WINE IN SHOW
Won by – Penfolds Wines – Bin A Chardonnay 2021

THE MAX SCHUBERT AM TROPHY for MOST OUTSTANDING RED WINE IN SHOW
Won by – Sutton Grange Winery – Sutton Grange Estate Syrah 2019

THE GRAMP, HARDY, HILL SMITH PRIZE for NATIONAL WHITE WINE OF PROVENANCE
Won By – Naked Run Wines – The First Riesling 2022, 2015, 2012

THE GRAMP, HARDY, HILL SMITH PRIZE for NATIONAL RED WINE OF PROVENANCE
Won By – Hardys Eileen Hardy Shiraz 2020, 2014, 2008

The 2022 Royal Adelaide Wine Show Trophy Results

THE AFFINITY LABS TROPHY for BEST RIESLING IN SHOW
Won by – Grant Burge – The Vigneron Reserve Riesling 2017

THE SEGUIN MOREAU TROPHY for BEST CHARDONNAY IN SHOW
Won by – Penfolds Wines – Bin A Chardonnay 2021

THE FINLAYSONS TROPHY for BEST SEMILLON IN SHOW
Won by – Tyrrells Vineyards – Vat 1 Semillon 2013

THE BDO TROPHY for BEST DRY WHITE BLEND IN SHOW
Won by – Robert Oatley Vineyard – Robert Oatley Signature Series Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc Semillon 2022

THE ARKABA CELLARS TROPHY for BEST SAUVIGNON BLANC IN SHOW
Won by – Dural Wines – Saint & Scholar Sauvignon Blanc 2022

THE PROGRAMMED PROPERTY SERVICES TROPHY for BEST OTHER VARIETAL WHITE IN SHOW –  Won by  Tomfoolery Wines – Fox Whistle Pinot Gris 2022

THE BRAUD AUSTRALIA TROPHY for BEST SWEET WHITE TABLE WINE IN SHOW
Won by – De Bortoli Wines – Noble One Semillon 2020

THE PIPER ALDERMAN TROPHY for BEST ROSE IN SHOW
Won by – Paulett Wines – Sangiovese Rose 2022

THE HURTLE & NORMAN WALKER TROPHY for BEST SPARKLING WINE IN SHOW
Won by – Golding Wines – Marjorie Blanc De Blancs Chardonnay 2016

THE LALLEMAND TROPHY for BEST PINOT NOIR IN SHOW
Won by – Coles Liquor – James Busby ‘Vineyard Series’ Tasmania Pinot Noir 2021

THE TILBROOK RASHEED TROPHY for BEST GRENACHE IN SHOW
Won by – Seppeltsfield Wines – Barossa Grenache 2022

THE RADOUX AUSTRALIA TROPHY for BEST OTHER RED BLEND IN SHOW
Won by – Hentley Farm – The Stray Grenache Shiraz 2021

THE WINE COMMUNICATORS OF AUSTRALIA, SA CHAPTER TROPHY for BEST SHIRAZ IN SHOW
Won by – Sutton Grange Winery – Sutton Grange Estate Syrah 2019

THE PROFESSOR A.J. PERKINS TROPHY for BEST CABERNET SAUVIGNON IN SHOW
Won by – Xanadu Wines – Cabernet Sauvignon 2020

THE KARL SEPPELT AO TROPHY for BEST OTHER VARIETAL RED IN SHOW- Won by Peter Lehmann Wines – Hill & Valley Tempranillo 2021

THE ORORA CLOSURES TROPHY for BEST SHIRAZ 2019 VINTAGE AND OLDER
Won by – Sutton Grange Winery – Sutton Grange Estate Syrah 2019

THE DOREAU AUSTRALIA TROPHY for BEST SHIRAZ 2020 VINTAGE AND YOUNGER
Won by – Pinnacle Drinks – Barebones Great Western Shiraz 2021

THE DR RAY BECKWITH OAM MEMORIAL TROPHY for BEST TRADITIONAL AUSTRALIAN RED BLEND IN SHOW
Won by – Majella Wines – The Musician Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz 2021

THE JOHN FORNACHON MEMORIAL TROPHY for BEST APERA, TOPAQUE, MUSCAT OR SWEET WHITE IN SHOW
Won by – Morris Wines – Old Premium Muscat

THE IN DAILY TROPHY for BEST AUSTRALIAN VINTAGE, TAWNY OR RUBY IN SHOW
Won by – Morris Wines – Old Premium Tawny

Thanks to Daily Wine news
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Tahbilk 13 vintages reviewed

Posted on October 6, 2022 by The Wine Commander

I was privileged to join a group of connoisseurs at Melbourne’s elite Wine Table, hosted recently at the Danish Club. The objective was to review 14 vintages of Chateau Tahbilk shiraz.

First though, some background and history of the winery which is quite interesting. Established in 1860, makes Tahbilk the oldest winery in Victoria and the fifth oldest in Australia. It’s wines have been created by of five generations of the Purbrick family, who purchased the property in 1925.

There are around 200 hectares of vineyard on their 1,214 hectare property, which includes 11 kilometres of Goulburn River frontage and eight kilometres of frontage to the Goulburn’s permanent backwaters, wetlands and creeks. Ideal sub soils for producing consistent varieties and also their world renown marsanne.

The first vines – 65 acres – were planted in 1860 by the Goulburn Vineyard Investment Company and the cottages, sheds, stables and blacksmith shop seen on the property today were all constructed between 1860 and 1865.

Throughout the 1870s, with the takeover of the Bear family and the employment of winemaker François Coueslant, more vineyards were planted, wine production boomed and an underground cellar was built. In a twist of fate, the contract for this was awarded to Escott James Purbrick, second-cousin once removed of Reginald Purbrick, who would later purchase the winery.

Success continued until the mid-1880s, when a series of setbacks hit. The vine louse phylloxera decimated the vineyards of Victoria in the late 1800s and economic and political factors saw a sudden decline in the fortunes of the Victorian wine industry in the first decade of the 21st century.

However, in June 1925, Reginald Purbrick purchased the property and the new era of Château Tahbilk began. While Reginald had intended to remove the vines and divide the land into dairy farms, he was persuaded the winery was viable and offered it to his son Eric. Arriving in 1931 from England, where he’d studied law at Cambridge, Eric assumed the role of winemaker the same year. With the help of friends, local winemakers and industry legend Francois de Castella, Eric learnt as much about winemaking and marketing as possible while restoring the cellars and planting phylloxera-resistant vines.

In the late 1970s, John’s son, Alister, having recently graduated from Roseworthy Agricultural College, and with several vintages at Mildara under his belt, took over winemaking duties from George Comi and became General Manager in 1978.

Under his guidance, the quality of the wines soared. While Alister remains CEO his daughter Hayley, the 5th generation of the Purbrick family continues the tradition.

Now we have that out of the way let’s look at my thumbnail tasting notes of each shiraz vintage.

1995 holding up beautifully, soft through palate. 88/100

2001 excellent, well balanced, eucalyptus, mulberries 95

2002 sappy, cardboard, volatile 85

2003 past, slightly oxidised, cork disintegrated 

2004 soft, nice tannins, savory, drink now 92

2005 colour fading, soft the palate, but fruit dies quickly 89

2006 dark, rich, full bodied, juicy,  blackberry, olives 93

2007 holding well,  long on palate, chewy tannins, balanced, 15%, 94

2008 cork, wonderful plums and blackberries dominate, good length 95

2009 cork magnum. cherries, spice, liquorice drinking well now 95

2010 dark colour, big full stewed fruit, yet to come together + 3-5 years 93

2011 unavailable , not made

2012 barnyard nose, soft throughout, no weight 93

2013 big, long full with mulberries, chocolate and sweet up front 95

2014 dark, full flavour with liquorice, pepper, long and balanced +5 years 96

So there you have it. I must mention we had a 2000 Tahbilk marsanne which was almost orange in colour but absolutely delightful. Retaining all the hall marks of marsanne – citrus, lemon, lime, honey hits of peach, pears and apricots. 99/100 

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Wine Spectator top 100 wines 2021

Posted on December 7, 2021 by The Wine Commander

 

Each year since 1988, the influential and prestigious US Wine Spectator magazine has released its Top 100 list, where the editors select the most exciting wines from the more than 12,500 they reviewed during 2021. Pictured left is the number one wine from the Napa Valley.

Its influence is substantial; many wines that feature highly in the list sell quickly in the following months, often at increased prices. (The selection prioritises quality (based on score), value (based on price) and availability. These criteria are applied to the wines that rated outstanding (90 points or higher on Wine Spectator’s 100-point scale) to determine the Top 100 for the year.

Our lives continue to be affected by COVID-19, yet 2021 has been an exciting year for wine. Restaurants are reopening for business, wine retail sales continue to outperform pre-pandemic levels, and demand from wine lovers was strong during lock downs.

But, many blue chip Australasian wines did not get a gong on this years list – the worst ever! Think Grange Hermitage (has previously been no 1 twice!), Henschke Hill of Grace, Te Mata Coleraine Cabernet (NZ) or Torbreck, The Laird from the Barossa.

Instead coming in at number 18 is a Central Otago dark horse, the 2018 Burn Cottage Pinot noir ($65) – the top wine from this part of the world. Three other local wines also featured. At no. 23 the 2019 John Duval Shiraz ($40) from the Barossa, at 49 2018 Hickinbotham Shiraz  ($75) from McLaren Vale and 2018 Thompson Estate  Cabernet from Margaret River ($30) at 74. The John Duval is a ripper and still available. Off you go….

Of course wine is very subjective so to many of you the list is purely academic.

 

Rank
Wine
Vintage
Score
Price
1
Dominus Estate Napa Valley +
 2018 97 $269
2
Château Pichon Longueville Lalande Pauillac +
 2018 98 $198
3
Heitz Cabernet Sauvignon Oakville Martha’s Vineyard +
 2016 95 $250
4
Merum Priorati Priorat Destí +
 2018 95 $49
5
Le Chiuse Brunello di Montalcino +
 2016 98 $99
6
Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne +
 2018 95 $200
7
Château Léoville Poyferré St.-Julien +
 2018 97 $104
8
Cavallotto Barolo Bricco Boschis +
 2016 95 $90
9
Salvestrin Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena Dr. Crane Vineyard +
 2018 95 $80
10
Château de Nalys Châteauneuf-du-Pape +
 2018 95 $105
11
Aubert Chardonnay Russian River Valley Eastside +
 2019 97 $85
12
Poggio Landi Brunello di Montalcino +
 2016 97 $59
13
Château Carbonnieux Pessac-Léognan White +
 2018 94 $44
14
Alexana Pinot Noir Dundee Hills Revana Vineyard +
 2018 94 $55
15
Giuseppe Nada Barbaresco Casot +
 2017 95 $43
16
Calcareous Syrah Paso Robles Devil’s Canyon +
 2018 94 $56
17
Talenti Brunello di Montalcino +
 2016 95 $50
18
Burn Cottage Pinot Noir Central Otago Burn Cottage Vineyard +
 2018 95 $65
19
Cayuse Syrah Walla Walla Valley Cailloux Vineyard +
 2018 96 $92
20
Badia a Coltibuono Chianti Classico +
 2018 93 $22
21
Luca Malbec Uco Valley Old Vine +
 2019 93 $35
22
Arterberry Maresh Pinot Noir Dundee Hills Old Vines +
 2018 93 $39
23
John Duval Shiraz Barossa Entity +
 2019 94 $40
24
Ridge Geyserville Alexander Valley +
 2019 93 $45
25
Wittmann Riesling Trocken Rheinhessen Westhofener +
 2019 94 $36
26
Salcheto Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva +
 2016 94 $36
27
Evening Land Chardonnay Eola-Amity Hills Seven Springs +
 2018 93 $35
28
Three Sticks Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast Price Family Estates +
 2019 95 $65
29
Sparkman Cabernet Sauvignon Columbia Valley Holler +
 2018 93 $32
30
Cantina del Pino Barbaresco +
 2016 94 $45
31
Filipa Pato Bairrada White Nossa Calcário +
 2019 93 $29
32
Massican Sauvignon Blanc Napa Valley +
 2020 93 $32
33
Ant Moore Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough Estate Series +
 2020 92 $17
34
Zena Crown Vineyard Pinot Noir Eola-Amity Hills Slope +
 2017 95 $75
35
Château de Vaudieu Châteauneuf-du-Pape +
 2019 94 $49
36
Bodegas Beronia Rioja Gran Reserva +
 2012 92 $30
37
Rochioli Pinot Noir Russian River Valley +
 2019 94 $64
38
Pio Cesare Barbera d’Alba +
 2019 92 $27
39
Vermillion Sierra Foothills-Sonoma County +
 2017 92 $35
40
Mauro Molino Barolo +
 2016 92 $30
41
Rapaura Springs Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough Classic +
 2020 91 $13
42
Chateau Ste. Michelle-Dr. Loosen Riesling Columbia Valley Eroica +
 2019 91 $20
43
Carol Shelton Zinfandel Mendocino County Wild Thing Old Vine +
 2018 91 $19
44
Tenute Sella & Mosca Cannonau di Sardegna Riserva +
 2018 90 $18
45
Quinta do Noval Vintage Port +
 2018 97 $100
46
Rocca di Montegrossi Chianti Classico San Marcellino Gran Selezione +
 2016 95 $75
47
MacDonald Cabernet Sauvignon Oakville +
 2018 98 $185
48
Domaine de Villaine Bouzeron +
 2018 92 $42
49
Hickinbotham Shiraz McLaren Vale Brooks Road +
 2018 95 $75
50
Schloss Gobelsburg Riesling Kamptal Schlosskellerei +
 2019 91 $19
51
Alois Lageder Pinot Grigio Vigneti delle Dolomiti Terra Alpina +
 2019 90 $16
52
Snowden Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Brothers Vineyard +
 2018 95 $90
53
Clos de los Siete Uco Valley +
 2018 90 $20
54
Schloss Lieser Riesling Kabinett Mosel Juffer +
 2019 95 $31
55
Philippe Viallet Vin de Savoie +
 2020 90 $14
56
Tedeschi Amarone della Valpolicella Marne 180 +
 2017 93 $60
57
Bodegas Pazo de Barrantes Albariño Rias Baixas +
 2019 91 $21
58
Chehalem Chardonnay Willamette Valley Inox Unoaked +
 2020 91 $20
59
Monte del Frà Custoza Superiore Cà del Magro +
 2019 90 $22
60
Force Majeure Syrah Red Mountain +
 2018 95 $85
61
Ben Haines Syrah Grampians +
 2020 94 $35
62
Stéphane Ogier Côtes du Rhône Le Temps Est Venu +
 2019 91 $23
63
G.B. Burlotto Barolo Monvigliero +
 2016 97 $100
64
Concha y Toro Syrah Buin Gravas del Maipo +
 2018 94 $70
65
Bodegas Ateca Garnacha Calatayud Atteca Armas Old Vines +
 2017 93 $45
66
De Martino Cabernet Sauvignon Maipo Valley Legado Reserva +
 2019 91 $20
67
Bastianich Friulano Friuli Colli Orientali Vini Orsone +
 2018 90 $18
68
Etxaniz Txakolina Getariako Txakolina Rosado Txomin Etxaniz +
 2020 90 $20
69
Domaine du Clos du Fief Juliénas Tradition +
 2018 91 $25
70
Domaine Chandon Brut Rosé California +
 NV 90 $19
71
Feudo Montoni Nero d’Avola Sicilia Lagnusa +
 2017 90 $22
72
Rivers-Marie Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena Panek Vineyard +
 2018 95 $110
73
55 Malbec Cabernet Sauvignon Paraje Altamira Zaha Toko Vineyard +
 2018 91 $25
74
Thompson Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Margaret River Four Chambers +
 2019 91 $30
75
Salvatore Molettieri Taurasi Vigna Cinque Querce +
 2013 94 $51
76
Louis Roederer Brut Champagne Collection 242 +
 NV 92 $63
77
Marcassin Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast Marcassin Vineyard +
 2014 95 $150
78
Bodega Matarromera Ribera del Duero Crianza +
 2018 91 $35
79
Saxon Brown Chardonnay Sonoma Coast Durell Vineyard +
 2017 94 $60
80
Alta Vista Atemporal Albaneve Vineyard Uco Valley +
 2018 90 $22
81
Brandlin Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder +
 2018 93 $90
82
Masottina Extra Dry Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore RDO Rive di Ogliano +
 2019 90 $28
83
Graeme & Julie Bott St.-Joseph White +
 2019 93 $65
84
Chalk Hill Chardonnay Sonoma Coast +
 2019 91 $26
85
Louis Jadot Beaune Clos des Ursules Domaine des Héritiers +
 2018 93 $95
86
Boundary Breaks Riesling Finger Lakes Dry No. 239 +
 2019 90 $20
87
Château Pradeaux Côtes de Provence Rosé +
 2020 91 $24
88
Kinsman Eades Cabernet Sauvignon Calistoga La Voleuse du Chagrin +
 2018 96 $195
89
Luis Seabra Douro Xisto Ilimitado +
 2018 91 $27
90
Graci Etna +
 2018 91 $33
91
Bodegas Emilio Moro Godello Bierzo El Zarzal +
 2018 92 $28
92
De Wetshof Chardonnay Robertson Bon Vallon +
 2020 91 $24
93
Guido Berlucchi Brut Rosé Franciacorta ’61 +
 NV 91 $36
94
Château Berliquet St.-Emilion +
 2018 92 $65
95
Colli di Lapio Fiano di Avellino +
 2019 91 $28
96
Detert Cabernet Franc Oakville +
 2018 92 $95
97
Domaine Guiberteau Saumur White +
 2018 91 $27
98
Faust Cabernet Sauvignon Coombsville The Pact +
 2018 93 $125
99
Krug Brut Champagne +
 2008 99 $309
100
Kamen Cabernet Sauvignon Moon Mountain District Lava Block +
Acknowledgement
to Wine Spectator
Edited 
 2018 94 $155
Posted in Features, Uncategorized, Wine News | Leave a comment

Spotlight on non alcohol wines. Part 2 – Australia

Posted on August 12, 2021 by The Wine Commander

Australian Vintages McGuigan Zero range now makes up 10 per cent of sales of the entire McGuigan portfolio.

 In part 1 of this topic we looked at no and non alcoholic wines progression in NZ. In this blog we examine theproduers and methods of producing no and low alcohol wines in Australia. 

It was late in 2018 when the idea of entering the alcohol-free wine category was raised at Australian Vintage after experimenting for more than 20 years.  In 2019 McGuigan Zero was launched comprising a Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Shiraz, Rosé and Sparkling. And the response by consumers has meant the McGuigan Zero range now makes up 10 per cent of sales of the entire McGuigan portfolio.

“The popularity of Zero has completely exceeded all our expectations,” remarks Australian Vintage’s chief winemaker Jamie Saint. “The popularity just keeps growing and now our challenge is to make sure we have enough stock to keep supplying  our customers.”

The growth has been phenomenal in Australia. The Endeavour Group recently reported that sales of non-alcoholic drinks in its BWS and Dan Murphy’s outlets increased 83% in the month of June 2021 compared with July 2020, with beer followed by wine the best-sellers in the category.

This demand inspired the recent opening of ‘Sans Drinks’, Australia’s first alcohol-free bottle shop in the suburb of Freshwater, located on Sydney’s northern beaches. Another trail blazer is ‘Brunswick Aces’ non-alcoholic bar in the Melbourne suburb of Brunswick East. It boasts more than 100 non alcoholic beers, wines and cocktails.

In the past a lot of the no and low alcohol products have been pretty average and has scared away consumers who thought, ‘Oh, that was terrible, I’m not going back there’.

 Generally, the wine industry has been “lagging behind” in responding to the growth in this segment of the market, largely due to the capital costs involved in producing low and no alcohol wines.

Australian Vintage chief winemaker Jamie Saint with the company’s spinning cone column.

Innovation ‘a problem’

 Smaller players haven’t been able to afford the technology to produce so   innovation is limited to things like piquette, where grape skins are rehydrated, fermented out, then bottled. But that’s not wine — that’s a grape-based beverage.

In Australia, labelling regulations state that a regular wine is anything that contains 4.5% ABV and above; between 0.5-1.15% ABV is regarded as a low alcohol wine, while anything less than 0.5% ABV can be labelled non-alcoholic or alcohol free wine. These regulations vary in overseas markets.

There have been two techniques favoured by most wineries in Australia and around the world to remove alcohol: reverse osmosis and spinning cone column.

The spinning cone column is probably the industry standard for de- alcoholisation down to 0.5% or 0.05% ABV. You generally get a better sensory result using those products. It’s gentler and it’s done at a cooler temperature.”

A global leader in spinning cone column technology is Australian company Flavourtech, based in Griffith, New South Wales, which specialises in the manufacture of technology designed to recover, extract and evaporate aromas for food, beverage and pharmaceutical products. But, one day, Flavourtech co-founder Andrew Craig was asked whether the spinning cone column could also be used to remove alcohol from wine.

“It did work and it worked really well,” remarks Flavourtech’s global sales manager Paul Ahn. “[Craig] was standing next to the condenser at the time and could smell the lovely varietal aromas being extracted. And, so, he decided he should look into this aroma aspect of the spinning cone column as well.”

Now this is interesting.

While a few refinements to the technology have been carried out since, the fundamentals remain the same.  The spinning cone column is a multi-stage distillation process that uses steam to strip, in this case, wine of alcohol.  Inside its stainless steel body lies a central rotating shaft and a number of alternating stationary and spinning cones attached to either the wall of the column or the shaft. Wine is fed into the top of column and onto the first stationary cone. It then falls down the cone by gravity and onto the spinning cone directly underneath whereby it is flung upwards and outwards by the centrifugal forces of the spinning cone. The wine then hits the wall of the spinning cone column and falls onto another stationary cone directly underneath, and the process continues down the column.

At the same time, steam is introduced at the bottom of the spinning cone and flows up, carrying with it the volatiles, namely the aroma compounds and alcohol, from the wine.  These volatiles are then condensed and stored while the de-aromatised and de-alcoholised wine exits from the bottom of the column.  The aroma compounds can subsequently be added back to the wine.

 The temperature of the column and steam are kept low, between 30-45°C. Ahn explains that wine is in the column for less than 30 seconds and this, combined with the low operating temperature, ensures the process has minimal or no impact on wine.

You can see why producing low and no alcohol wines has been a barrier to uptake by smaller producers.  The price starts at just over $400,000.

 It is the application of a spinning cone column that has resulted in McGuigan Zero.

Australian Vintage’s Tempus Two Lighten Up range includes a prosecco, rosé and Pinot Noir which have an ABV of 6.8%.

Australian Vintage’s Tempus Two Lighten Up range includes a prosecco, rosé and Pinot Noir which have an ABV of 6.8%.

Understanding changes and effects

In June this year, Australian Vintage launched a new lower alcohol range of wines under its Tempus Two label called Lighten Up. With an ABV of 6.8%, the range includes a Prosecco, Rosé and Pinot Noir and, like the McGuigan Zero, were made using the same spinning cone column technology.

McGuigan has now grown to become the number one selling alcohol-free wine in Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.

VAF Memstar is another Australian-based company with a history in the treatment of wine to reduce alcohol using a ethanol reduction process.

Casella Family Brands has applied reverse osmosis in the production of its lower-in-alcohol [yellow tail] Pure Bright wines, which was released in June and trailed since 2015. Comprising a Pinot Noir and Sparkling with an ABV of 10.8% and 8.5%, respectively, the wines were also released onto the US and Canadian market earlier in 2021.

 “The production of [yellow tail] Pure Bright started towards the end of 2019. It was developed to provide a lighter, more refreshing alternative with fewer calories and less alcohol when compared to our core range, which meets consumer demands while also attracting a younger demographic”, explained David Joeky of Casella.

(Left) The [yellow tail] Pure Bright range is currently available in a sparkling and Pinot Noir. (Right) Casella Family Brands winemaker David Joeky.

It is also accepted that regular wine consumers have increased their frequency of wine consumption at home due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a trend that is expected to continue for the next few years beyond the pandemic.

 “Our vines are selected and pruned to maximise the leaf protection from the sun, protecting the grapes and slowing their development whilst maintaining fruit flavour and intensity. The grapes are picked earlier, while they have a lower natural sugar content, converting to lower alcohol in the wine. We also implement night harvest to keep the grapes cool and crisp in order to maximise the aroma and flavour” says Joeky.

Joeky says that while white varieties and light-bodied reds have responded better to the alcohol targets, reds have proved trickier to achieve the desired alcohol level without losing balance in the wine and the tannins increasing.

“Some products work better than others. Sparkling wines, whites, they’re probably easier than the reds. Reds present a formidable challenge to figure out how to replicate wine. he said”

“Alcohol is one of the important balancing components in wine. If you just take the alcohol out, it’s like cutting off one leg of a chair. If you think of the legs of a chair as alcohol, tannin, acid and sugar, if you take out just one of them, then you unbalance that wine. And that’s why, consistently, most of the tastings of zero or very low alcohol wines have not been particularly satisfying, because people imagine that you can take a wine, a good Barossa Shiraz or Coonawarra Cabernet, take out the alcohol and then somehow it remains like that. It doesn’t work that way, especially with red.”

Diagrams explaining how VAF Memstar’s technology removes alcohol: (left) this highly magnified schematic cross-section of a wall of a tubular membrane shows the migration of alcohol through microscopic pores, from a high concentration stream to a lower concentration stream on the inside of the tube; this process is known as evaporative perstraction and (right) alcohol reduction by reverse osmosis and evaporative perstraction where water is used to strip alcohol from the permeate stream of reverse osmosis processed wine. This permeate is then recombined with the wine from which it was extracted, thus lowering the alcohol of the blend.

Left: Flavourtech’s Spinning Cone Column is a multi-stage distillation column that employs steam as the stripping medium. It consists of a stainless steel body, central rotating shaft and  cones.

I hope you found this series interesting. I learnt alot from my research. But I am off now to drink a nice 15%  Barossa red. Care to join me?

Thanks to Sonya Logan in Grapegrower & Winemaker magazine. Article edited.
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Spotlight on non alcoholic wines. Part 1 – NZ

Posted on August 11, 2021 by The Wine Commander

 Above: John Forest from Forest wines in Marlborough, NZ with The Doctors range of wines.

You may not like to drink them but the fact is there is a growing demand for no and low alcohol wine around the world. 18 wine companies in NZ for instance, formed the  ‘New Zealand Lighter Wines’ initiative which has led to the release of a range of initially low and more recently no alcohol wines called NOLO wines for short.  

 New Zealand wine producer John Forrest, became a NOLO pioneer in 2006.  “I had zero interest in lower alcohol wine up until 2006 because, quite frankly, I quite enjoyed a big 14.5-15% Aussie Shiraz and still do. But, because I’m a Riesling-file, and I didn’t have a Kabinett style Riesling in our portfolio I made one”.

The Kabinett-style Riesling was bottled under its own label called The Doctors’ and launched at a tasting in Christchurch in September 2006. “Everybody commented that it was a nice Riesling, but they loved the idea of good wine with less alcohol. I thought if I could make a lower alcohol, high quality Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc typical of its style, you would be onto a sure winner, given that Sauvignon Blanc was the biggest volume and biggest value white wine in the world at the time. But in the first two years I made “some pretty average wine samples”.

Giesen’s Ara Zero Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, which was launched in mid-2020.

Turning attention to the vineyard

An abstract from a research article out of Germany’s Geisenheim University described some success by reducing alcohol levels via leaf removal.

For two or three years he selectively removed leaves according to different timings and the number and position in the canopy. He found that a certain set of leaves at a certain time clearly slowed the rate of sugar, but when you tasted the juice, it tasted ripe.

Secondly, he changed the shoot positions in the canopy structure so that the leaves he wanted to trim off were above the top of the trellis posts.

The first Sauvignon Blanc under The Doctors’ label was released in 2009 at 9.5% alcohol and three years later the 2012 vintage picked up the wine’s first gold medal. Success followed with UK supermarket chain Waitress, taking a contract for 40,000 cases a year and then local viticultural consultant David Jordan came knocking. Jordan was aiming to make the New Zealand wine industry the international leader in the production of premium lower-in-alcohol wines.

David Jordan, program manager for New Zealand’s Lighter Wines initiative.
 Forrest Wines would become one of 18 New Zealand wine companies that contributed either cash or in-kind support to the research and development that became known as NZ Lighter Wines.
Beginning in 2014, it was led by New Zealand Winegrowers, with the support from the participating wineries supplemented by industry levy funding and the NZ Government, bringing the total funding pool to $15 million (AUD) in dollar terms. The largest research initiative ever undertaken by the New Zealand wine industry. Its challenge was to solve how to naturally lower the alcohol content without compromising the quality, flavour and style of wine.

“We wanted to hold true to what New Zealand wines are internationally renowned for: that they be vibrant and flavoursome, still refreshing and have all the quality attributes of the wines that has enabled us to have an export profile and sell significant volumes which are now achieving NZ$2 billion worth of export earnings around the world,”  Jordan explained.

“We wanted to better understand the role of alcohol as you come down the scale to less than 10%. Model Sauvignon Blanc wines were developed to understand exactly what aspects of the sensory experience were affected by reductions in alcohol. A reduction in alcohol from 12.2% to 9.5% increased the perception of acid and conversely decreased the perception of sweetness, bitterness, full-bodiedness, smoothness and palate length” he said.

 They found the aromas and flavours better than at a higher alcohol level   and subsequent work revealed that some of the more tropical flavours that Sauvignon Blanc is known for, present better at a lower alcohol.

Various techniques were trialled for their ability to delay sugar accumulation and impact on other wine parameters: short periods of deficit irrigation at key vine growth stages; fertiliser treatments; reducing canopy size through shoot thinning or leaf removal; and clones that were naturally lower in acidal selection.

“Technically, what we’re talking about is delaying ripening so you can pick with the same flavours, same acid but at a lower sugar, in combination with the role of clones,” Jordan says. “

Investigating winery manipulations 

It gets a bit technical here but stay with me please!

Winery manipulations were also investigated as part of the Lighter Wines initiative: the influence of skin contact to substitute the loss of texture, body and heat in reduced-alcohol wines; whether there was an optimal fermentation temperature to minimise the ethanol produced by yeast while maximising wine body and aromas in early harvest grapes; the effectiveness of different inoculation methods in reducing the conversion of sugar to ethanol in producing lower alcohol wines; and whether non-Saccharomyces yeast species could be used early in ferments to reduce the amount of sugar available to S. cerevisiase to ferment; and the role of oxygen during fermentation in reducing ethanol.(I hope you are still with me!)

Because the Lighter Wines initiative was based around producing lower alcohol wines naturally, this meant the lowest limit that could be achieved in wines like Sauvignon Blanc was 9-9.5%.

“It’s very difficult to have wines of all the appealing character, aroma and flavour of Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Gris if you go below that. If you’re down to near 0%, you’ve transformed the beverage immensely and  you’ve got an even more significant challenge to actually get a wine to look wine-like,” he explains.

But now an increasing number of lower and zero alcohol products have hit the shelves. A number of them have wines at the mid strength level of 5-7%. with some down at zero.

In 2018, Giesen released a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris at 9% alcohol under the label Pure Light. In early 2020, the company also released the Giesen 0% Sauvignon Blanc, with stocks in New Zealand and Australia selling out shortly after release. Then in mid 2020, Giesen released its Ara Zero Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.

Giesen’s 0% Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.

Thanks to Sonya Logan in Grapegrower & Winemaker magazine. Article edited.

 

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