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Diamondtina
The first wines made at Old Kent River were Pinot Noir and a
sparkling wine (Diamondtina) that was made from a blend of Pinot Noir and
Chardonnay. That initial Diamondtina proved such an instant success that
Mark and Debbie decided to repeat the exercise in subsequent years.
Diamondtina comprises 60-70% Pinot Noir and 30-40% Chardonnay. The
complexity and length provided by the Pinot Noir are complemented by the
fruit character, finesse and tight acidity supplied by the Chardonnay. The
grapes of both varieties are picked at sugar levels of only 10 to 11° Baumé
to ensure that the wine has the freshness, tightness and high natural
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acidity (about 10g per litre) that characterises the great wines of
Champagne. The fruit is whole bunch pressed and the wine is made in the
traditional
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method employed in Champagne. The period spent on lees was decreased
to 18 months in the early 2000s due to demand for the wine. By increasing
production, the Noacks have been able to raise that period back to three
years, as in the earliest vintages.
Diamondtina is still the only sparkling wine made from the
traditional champagne varieties that has been awarded trophies at major wine
shows. The Noacks are justifiably proud of the ability of their Diamondtina
to age very well. This ability is clearly shown by the fact that the
earliest vintages are still lively and drinking very well, even though they
were made from fruit grown on young vines.
Achievements include: 2 Trophies, 1 Gold Medal and 3 Bronze. |
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Chardonnay
The Noacks and winemaker Michael Staniford produce an elegant
restrained and complex style from Chardonnay. This wine is the antithesis of
the high alcohol and heavily wooded wines that were often made from that
grape variety elsewhere in Australia during the mid-1990s, when Old Kent
River started producing wine from the great white variety of Burgundy. The
wine also has the structure to develop great complexity over several years
under good cellaring conditions.
The Chardonnay fruit is typically picked at 12.5 to 13.5° Baumé and
barrel fermented in a mixture of Vosges, Alliers and Troncais oak barrels.
The
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amount of the wine that is allowed to undergo malolactic
fermentation is adjusted according to the characteristics of the fruit
produced in that year.
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The bouquet of the Old Kent River Chardonnay combines attractive
ripe lemon, peach and nectarine aromas and just the right amount of
background charry oak. The palate, which contains rich nectarine, grapefruit
and tropical fruit flavours, has an attractive creaminess, derived from the
yeast lees. The finish is long, clean and crisp. While the Old Kent River
Chardonnay drinks very well when young, it develops attractive, complex
characters with 5 - 7 years bottle ageing.
Achievements include: 3 Trophies, 4 Silver Medals and 13 Bronze Medals.
Selected by Qantas — first class cabin wine / Best of the West — Winestate.
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Sauvignon Blanc
The Old Kent River Sauvignon Blanc is a fresh and delicious wine
that is an excellent aperitif and a good accompaniment to crustaceans and
fish. The retention of fresh fruit character and good natural acidity are
facilitated by typically picking the grapes at Baumés of only 11.5 to 13°,
fermenting in steel tanks and bottling early.
The bouquet exudes fresh green apple, kiwi fruit and citrus aromas
and a touch of gunflint. The flavoursome palate is beautifully balanced,
combining lovely fresh and intense lemon and apple flavours and finishes
with good crisp acidity.
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Achievements include: 4 Silver Medals and 7 Bronze Medals.
Selected
by James Halliday to represent Australia in the Tri Nations competition. |
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Premium Red Wines |
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Pinot Noir
The outstanding reputation of Old Kent River, as reflected in the
five star rating given by James Halliday in his Wine Companion Book, is very
largely due to the high quality of its Pinot Noir and Diamondtina. The
consistency of the wines made by Old Kent River from the great Burgundian
red grape variety is demonstrated by the awards received by the three Pinot
Noirs that are currently on release. Thus, the 2005 and 2007 Pinot Noirs won
Silver and Gold medals respectively, at the 2008 Western Australian Wine
Show, with the latter wine also receiving the Trophy for best Pinot Noir,
while the 2006 Burls won a Gold Medal at the Adelaide Wine Show in 2007.
James Halliday has also recently rated the just released standard 2002 Pinot
Noir as the
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best Western Australian wine made from this
variety. Incidentally, the Burls is OKR’s premium Pinot Noir and is only
made in those years when the fruit is
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particularly outstanding. It is no coincidence that such great
years, for example 2002 and 2006, are among the cooler years at Old Kent
River. The term Burls refers to the knots that are found occa-sionally on
the local Jarrah trees and which are highly valued by wood craftsmen.
Master of Wine, Kit Stephens once stated that, of the 100 best red
wines one would ever taste in Europe, 97 would be from Bordeaux and three
would come from Burgundy, but the three greatest would be the three from
Burgundy. While this rather provocative statement highlights the
difficulties that are inherent in trying to produce wine from Pinot Noir, it
also emphasises that, when conditions are particularly favourable, the
result is sublime.
In view of the fickle nature of Pinot Noir, why did Mark and
Debbie Noack decide to make this variety the cornerstone of their plantings?
Prior to establishing their vineyards, Mark and Debbie invested many hours
researching which varieties were likely to perform best in the climate and
soil of Rocky Gully. They eventually came to the conclusion that the very
cool climate in their area and the silty, gravelly loam soils would be ideal
for growing Pinot Noir, a variety that had achieved little success elsewhere
in Western Australia.
The first Pinot Noir vines were planted in 1985. As the fruit from
the first few harvests lacked depth, it was sold to large producers.
However, by the early 1990s, the wisdom of Mark and Debbie’s decision to
plant Pinot Noir was borne out when Tony Jordan from Domaine Chandon visited
Old Kent River and was so impressed by the Pinot Noir fruit that he actually
purchased some each year and trans-ported it as whole berries all the way
across Australia to his company’s winery in Victoria. Tony was particularly
impressed by the fruit from the Marifield clone, which did not perform well
at his Green Point vineyard.
Experience over the years led Mark and winemaker Michael Staniford
to progressively refine their viticulture and winemaking to optimise the
characters and quality of OKR Pinot Noir. The fruit is thus now harvested at
1˝ to 3 tonnes to the acre and at Baumé (sugar) levels that represent ideal
physiological ripeness and which result in alcohol levels of 12.5 to 13%.
In the winery, Michael now uses Vosges, Troncais and Nevers oak
barrels made by Francois Fréres and Dargaud and Jaeglé. The amount of time
spent in barrel has now been reduced to just under a year, with 30 and 80%
of the barrels for the traditional Pinot and Burls, respectively, being new.
Particular attention is made to ensure that the fruit is backed by the
appropriate amount of acid and that the tannins are unobtrusive.
Achievements include: Seal of approval — International Wine
Challenges; 3 Trophies, 2 Gold Medals, 9 Silver Medals and 21 Bronze Medals. |
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Burls (Reserve Pinot Noir)
Burls was chosen by Mark and Debbie to recognise the great care and
attention that was invested in the production of this superb wine. The rare
burls, which are knots found on the indigenous Jarrah trees, are much sought
after by woodworkers who handcraft them into exquisite woodwork with
distinctive grain patterns. The handcrafted and very limited Burls Pinot
Noir is made from fruit grown on the best block of vines at OLD KENT RIVER.
The wine was matured for 12 months in high quality French oak. A recent
tasting of the 1997 Reserve Pinot Noir (1st vintage) indicated that the
Reserve Pinots will live for ages! These wines need breathing to reveal
their true character.
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International Pinot Noir tasting 2000 — Quote:
"Something special, a lot of excellences level of intensity
and richness which is pretty rare for Pinot Noir.
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A job well done!"
Jim Clendenen, Au Bon Climat, California. 1997 Reserve Pinot Noir.
Sets the bench mark for Western Australia, James Halliday Wine
Companion 2007 edition. |
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Shiraz
The success of their first vintage of Shiraz (1997) demonstrated
that the Noacks had made an excellent choice for their second red grape
variety. Although this wine was made from vines that were only three years
old, it was selected by Qantas for serving to their first class passengers
and was the top pointed Shiraz at the 1998 Mount Barker Wine Show. The 1998
Shiraz was even better wine and won a Gold Medal at the Perth Royal
Agricultural Show.
The Shiraz vines are supplied with minimal irrigation and subjected
to judi-cious pruning to ensure that the vines do not grow too vigorously. As
a
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result, yields are kept to less than 3 tons to the acre and the fruit
reaches optimal ripeness at Baumés of 12.5 to 13.5°. The high quality
berries are
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small and thus provide a good skin to juice ratio. This Shiraz is matured in
high quality French oak, of which 20 to 30% is new.
The bouquet of the Old Kent River shiraz combines cool area spicy and black
pepper aromas with subtle vanillan oak in the background.
The palate, which is medium bodied, and long, contains rich cherry and red
current flavours, whose complexity is enhanced by the subtle oak. Great drinking at 2 - 3
years but also has the potential to gain complexity for 5 – 8 years.
Achievements include: 1 Gold Medal, 3 Silver Medals and 7 Bronze Medals.
Selected by Qantas 1999 — first class cabin wine.
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Backtrack Range Wines
The Backtrack range is named after the shortcut from Old Kent River's main
vineyards in the Frankland Region to our cellar door on South Coast Highway,
Denmark.
BACKTRACK traverses the newly proclaimed Walpole Wilderness — 135,000
hectares of a pristine forest wonderland...dry in summer, excitingly wet in
winter, and in spring a myriad of wildflowers in one of the world's most
diverse botanical regions
The Backtrack range of wines are fantastic every day drinking wines. These
are fruit driven styles you can drink whilst young, or cellar for the short
term.
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BT Chardonnay |
BT Pinot Noir |
BT Shiraz |
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