Let's talk nebbiolo. How long have you got? Hopefully, a fair amount of time because that's how long this lovely will need to fully express itself. It's coiled tight, but there is so much to excite from the inviting, lifted floral and spice-fuelled aromas to the slowly evolving mix of dark fruits, earth, undergrowth, woodsy oak, anise, spice and much more across a palate that is tightly focused in tannin. Something for now, something for the future. Points: 95/100
The name nebbiolo comes from the nebbia or “fog” that often blankets the region’s vine-covered hillsides. Very evocative. And even though the grapes for this wine come from a vineyard in the cool, high and often foggy granite-soil country in southern Heathcote, and 2022 was a cool, late vintage, the first thing you notice when tasting this nebbiolo alongside the barolo is the sweetness and volume of fruit: there’s a ripeness to the cherries and plums that just speaks so eloquently of the Australian sun. It’s a younger wine, too, of course, and spent less time in barrel (18 months) before bottling, so there’s a boldness and snappiness to the distinctive drying nebbiolo tannins that hug the tongue as you sip. Made me crave some nice prosciutto: its soft white silky fat would be the perfect foil for the tannins.
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