By John Rozentals.
I live in relative luxury in the Central West NSW town of Molong — high, ornately decorated ceilings, long velvet curtains, elegant staircases, and all within a short stroll of the Town Hall and a couple of pubs.
They’re certainly much grander digs than I could have afforded in Sydney, though I probably should have listened more closely to a friend when she raised the potential problem of heating the place in winter.
That’s the season when I live in my office with fan-heater on and door shut, and scurry to the bedroom and kitchen.
But if I needed any convincing on the reality of global warming it has come through the relenting heat of this summer.
Not that I’ve been alone in the realisation, with plenty of folk, including some winemakers and grapegowers, reacting to the situation.
Andrew Koerner, Chief Winemaker at the normally cool-climate central Victorian Blue Pyrenees winery and vineyard, has taken in fruit from the even cooler Macedon district to the south-east for his premium bubbly, Midnight Cuvée.
“The warmer vintages of late have necessitated the inclusion of even cooler climate, higher natural acid grapes to maintain the continual improvement of Midnight Cuvée,” he said.
The advantages have been immediately apparent, with the 2015 vintage picking up the trophy for Best Sparkling Wine of Show at the Victorian Wines Show last year.
WINE REVIEWS
Blue Pyrenees Estate 2018 Bone Dry Rosé ($22): Love the wine, which is part of a resurgence — though that may be the wrong word for something that has barely existed in the past — of a wine type so suited to our lifestyle. It’s fresh, crisp, flavoursome and dry. Hate the label, which has me humming the theme to Rawhide and thinking of herding long-horn cattle as the tumbleweed rolls in.
Blue Pyrenees Estate 2016 The Pom Cabernet Franc ($32): I like this dry red, which is a cellar-door release. It displays the tell-tale Pyrenees district mintiness, but not aggressively so, and is medium-bodied and perfect for pizza or red-sauced pasta at the local Italian bistro. The name, incidentally, is a nod to the cabernet franc wines of the French district of Pomerol.
WINE OF THE WEEK
Blue Pyrenees Estate 2015 Midnight Cuvée ($36): It’s easy to see why this premium bubbly picked up the trophy for best sparkling wine at last year’s Victorian wine show. It’s pure class and distinguished by a rare combination of fresh crunchiness and complex creaminess. Drink it on its own as an aperitif or match it with something such as the very best sushi.
