2005 Lerida Estate Pinot Noir

2008 Lerida Estate Shiraz Viognier

This wine is made from 95% Shiraz and 5% Viognier.  It is cold soaked for 5 days before fermentation (up to 35º) with hand plunging 3 times a day.  It is left on skin for a further 10 days then pressed off to French oak barrigues to mature for 15 months.  The wine has an intense nose of freshly stewed plums, mulberry, spice, apricot and vanilla aromas with a rich and savoury palate backed by a long fine grain tannin finish.  This wine will cellar for 8-10 years.

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2008 Shiraz

A classic cool climate Shiraz from the hills surrounding Canberra, which offers cool brambleberry and spice aromas with a surprisingly generous palate. The flavours are quite refined, berries and a little pepper, with a long, fine tannin finish. With age, the wine will become progressively richer, revealing warmer, more complex flavours, riper berries and a little liquorice. Drink now, but definitely worth cellaring 1-4 years.

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2008 Josephine Pinot Noir

This wine had its origin in the observation by an external consultant that we had ten barriques (out of the equivalent of 72) with truly outstanding and world class flavour potential. On this basis, these barrels were blended into a special bottling using a family name. The resulting wine has a higher-than-normal proportion of new French oak, (40%), and a predominance of fruit from our Dijon clones and the top-most rows, above 700 metres, although every area is represented. We were looking for varietal definition, power, balance and complexity. New oak demands great fruit, and in a lesser year than 2008, or with younger vines, we would not have dared to concentrate so much.

As the wine ages, we are seeing our strategy for this wine starting to pay off, as the rich and varied fruit aromas and silky Pinot Noir tannins combine with the complementary oak and then unfold on the palate to give the true 'peacock’s tail' effect of a great Pinot Noir. This wine is just beginning to drink well now (and to climb up the medal placings) but the wine requires several years of careful ageing to realise its full potential. The diversity of comment from the reviews below (Gourmet Traveller Wine, Oct/Nov 2009)underlines the complexities and ageing potential of this great red wine. The wine received a 90/100 score from the tasting panel:

Huon Hooke: 'Strawberry and other berries in its perfume. Sappiness suggests whole-bunch fermentation. Savoury, gamey flavours. Fleshy, yet with abundant tannins'.

Peter Forrestal: 'Brambleberry and mulberry, This is a big style of Pinot indeed'.

Debbie Pearce: '... The wine has the depth of fruit to match its weight. It should develop in bottle for several years'.

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2006 Lerida Estate Chardonnay

This wine is made from fruit  from our vineyard (50%)and fruit from our neighbour’s (Lake George Winery) vineyard (50%) where the chardonnay vines are more than 30 years old. It has a light straw colour with aromas of peach, melon, apricot, citrus and vanilla with nutty/buttery overtones. A smooth, rich palate with a long crisp but soft oak finish. Serve lightly chilled.

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2008 Lerida Estate Chardonnay

This wine is made with fruit grown at our vineyard at Lake George. It is 100% barrel fermented in French oak barriques (25% new), with lees stirring every 2 weeks.  It is a light straw colour with aromas of peach, melon, mandarin and vanilla, with nutty/toasty overtones. A smooth, rich palate with a long crisp but soft oak finish. Serve lightly chilled. Very drinkable now, it will benefit from ageing for 3-5 years.

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2009 Lerida Estate Pinot Gris

This wine is made from Pinot Gris grapes grown at our vineyard at Lake George. It was fermented mostly in stainless steel, but 10% was fermented in older oak barrels. The wine shows apple, spice, citrus and rose aromas with savoury, vanilla overtones. The palate is rich and textured with a slight sweetness and a balanced acid finish.   The wine will cellar for 3-4 years.

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2009 Lerida Estate Unwooded Chardonnay

This wine is made with fruit grown at our vineyard at Lake George. It has melon, peach and citrus aromas with subtle spicy notes. It has a smooth, rich palate with gentle acidity on a long finish.

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Lerida Estate "Zenzi"

'Zenzi' is a semi-sweet wine made from super premium riesling grapes grown in the Canberra District.  The wine displays a mix of citrus, spice, floral and a touch of mineral aromas.  The palate is slightly sweet with gentle citrusy flavours balanced by a pleasant acid finish. Serve cold. Matches well with spicy foods, and desserts, for example, Strawberry Macaroons and Ruby Grapefruit Jelly with Mango Mousse.

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2006 Lerida Estate Brut Rosé

2009 Lerida Estate Pinot Rosé

The colour is crystalline pink, glinting with ochre, straw and honey, like a tray of varicoloured Argyle diamonds.  The nose is classic Lerida Estate Pinot Noir red fruit, but with an intriguing floral overlay.  Imagine a mixed punnet of red cherries and wild raspberries in a basket of roses and violets - all picked just after dawn. The same spectrum of flavours appears on the palate, wound tightly into a ball of natural fruit acids.  The finish is clean, fresh and dry.

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2008 Lerida Estate Pinot Rosé Saignée