Out Of The Bottle
With David Ellis
Diamond Creek Estate 2006 Pinot Noir & Taster’s Choice Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc
Early colonists soon discovered that an area to the south of Sydney
Town and now known as the Southern Highlands, had a climate that was
perfect for farming and grazing – and for also escaping Sydney’s humid
summer heat.
And while some wine grapes were grown there as
early as the 1820s by those pioneering colonists, it was not until the
late 1900s that serious thought was given to winemaking; today cool
climate vineyards are scattered throughout the region, thriving in the
region’s warm summer days and colder nights.
Diamond Creek
Estate, 680-metres up on the northern slopes of Mittagong, is one of
the region’s success stories, producing premium Cabernet Sauvignon,
Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Riesling and a Botrytised
desert wine from 6ha of sunny, north-facing vineyards planted in 1997.
Today’s
owner and vigneron, Helen Louise Hale hand-prunes and plucks her vines,
which in the case of her 2006 Pinot Noir has resulted in a beautifully
full-bodied wine with ripe cherry and strawberry fruit flavours,
lingering tannins and a velvety finish.
A great food wine to
share with seared salmon or smoked duck, its available cellar door or
online only by phoning Helen on 02 4872 3311 or visiting www.diamondcreekestate.com.au One For Lunch
Woolworths Liquor, BWS and Dan Murphy’s have a new range of
budget-priced wines they call CleanSkins Selection, created they say to
“over-deliver in quality at the best-possible price.”
Their
CleanSkins Taster’s Choice Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc certainly lives
up to this claim: at $9.99 it has subtle passionfruit, melon and
capsicum notes on the palate, and a crisp finish that makes it a
pleasant companion with fish and other seafoods. They’ve also a nice
CleanSkins Taster’s Choice
‘DW31’ 2009 Barossa Valley Shiraz if you are more into reds, and it too is priced at just $9.99.
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