Hard Graft, Easy Drinking

The Age

Saturday November 10, 2007

Jane Faulkner

IT'S TAKEN Richard McIntyre close to 20 years but he's done it. Lopped the tops of his cabernet sauvignon vines and grafted pinot noir on to them instead. Bravo! Brave because, as he admits, "Persuading anyone that the Mornington Peninsula can produce a decent cabernet is hard work." Dr McIntyre's Moorooduc Estate has become synonymous with refined chardonnay and pinot noir (although the shiraz is mighty good too). When he and wife Jill planted vines in 1983, with no one else in the immediate area, they were told the warm site was fine for Bordeaux varieties, hence the cabernet sauvignon. But, as they later discovered, it's a cool climate wine region. "I made terrific cabernet in some years but not enough in all years," Dr McIntyre says. I don't think he's too upset, this is what being a vigneron is all about, discovering what your patch of earth will offer. By the mid-1990s, he knew pinot noir was going to be a better variety and it just about coincided with the availability of what's known as the Dijon clones. He now has a mix of seven clones, with the Dijon adding subtlety, perfume, fineness and finesse to the wines.

"I think the quality of the wine has jumped since 2000," Dr McIntyre says. "Other things have improved as well, the viticulture is good, the vines are maturing." Vines planted to Dijon clones tend to ripen a few weeks earlier (than the MV6, the workhorse equivalent of Australian pinot noir), and this was a worry for McIntyre in the last two vintages - two of the coolest and earliest on record on the peninsula.

"I was a bit worried because the wines might be showing hot climate characters (jammy and over-ripe) but instead they just show amazing concentration and structure." The 2006 and 2007 won't be out for another year and perhaps more. But for whites, 2005 is a fantastic vintage - they'll be on the market in the next few months. And if chardonnay is your drink of choice (of course it is) Moorooduc Estate produces some crackers. Ever since wild yeast (which adds complexity to the wine) became part of the winemaking regimen more than a decade ago with the fruit picked a bit earlier to retain natural fresh acidity and plenty of solids in the mix to add texture, the chardonnays have been outstanding. The Moorooduc, the top wine - it has a duck on the label - is a joy to drink. And because McIntyre is into yeast, he also built a wood-fired oven and bakes the excellent bread that is served in the stylish winery restaurant, Jill's, each weekend. The dining room is one of the most delightful of any winery-restaurant. But come the new year, pizzas will be a regular feature. Not at Jill's but in the new cellar door-cum-cafe-cum-pizzeria that should be completed by the end of January. -- JANE FAULKNER

MOOROODUC ESTATE CHARDONNAY 2004 $35

There's a lovely nose of dried mandarin peel, a touch of lemon sherbet too with some nuttiness and creamy caramel nuances, some lightly spiced oak, too. Opens up generously with plenty of good fruit, texture and palate weight. Oh-so-easy to drink.

MOOROODUC ESTATE SHIRAZ 2004 $30

Love everything about this excellent cool-climate shiraz, from its pristine juicy fruit notes of plums and brambles to its more-ish savouriness, it's wonderfully spicy and peppery. It's a gentle shiraz, beautifully balanced with giving, soft tannins, meaning it's drinking so superbly now.

THE MOOROODUC CHARDONNAY 2004 $55

The Moorooduc is all about texture, layers of it, and complexity, without a heavy handed approach in the winery of course. It's still restrained and tight on the palate with superb fruit, enticing spice notes especially ginger but there's quite a savoury element with some delicate creamy, leesy notes. Builds on the palate with the oak finely integrated and with excellent length.

© 2007 The Age

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