New wines

The new releases for 2018 are now out. Leading the way is the new 2017 white Ancestral sparkling, this year made from a blend of Tumbarumba Chardonnay and our usual Canberra Savagnin. Pretty, Savagnin-driven aromatics and good acid line and length from the Chardonnay.

There are also two table wines. The 2017 Fiano is the first pick from the new Hilltops vines (grafted onto petit verdot a few years ago). Good fruit weight balances the influence of skin contact. Lemons and pear drops. Creamy, waxy texture too.

The Salita Sagrantino from 2016 is a blend of Hilltops and Murrumbateman fruit. Tiny bottling (one 500 litre barrel, same as the 2013), but shows the benefits of blending the gently-blueberried Hilltops fruit with the more intense Canberra picking. Sagrantino tannins & the dusty cocoa finish I look for in Sagrantino.

All wines $30 recommended retail price and available from the website now.