Description
Hurley Vineyard wraps north to east around the crest of a little volcanic hill in Balnarring on the Mornington Peninsula of Victoria, Australia. Kevin Bell and Tricia Byrnes are immersed in the task of showcasing what their 3 differing single vineyard plots or climats can express. Burgundy clearly inspired them to this endeavour, not to mimic the wines from the Cote d’Or in terms of taste but the ethos of single site expressions, terrior driven wines. Planted in 1998 and 1999 the estate has 3.43 hectares of Pinot Noir across 3 clearly defined climats: Lodestone, Hommage and Garamond.
Kevin says: “Our principles are: organic viticulture, non-irrigation, low yields and true expression of the terroir of a vineyard and the individual climats within a vineyard”.
Hurley Vineyard’s position receives abundant sunshine and free-moving air, yet is well-protected from strong winds by 100 year old pine trees and the surrounding topography. The hill is capped by stony, red-brown earth. This ‘Older Volcanic’ soil type is quick to warm and slow to cool, and retains moisture and drains freely.
Winemaking consists of hand-picked fruit arriving to the winery where grapes are cooled overnight before 100% destemmed whole berries (no whole-bunch) go into 2 ton open top fermenters. Pre-ferment maceration cold soak of approximately one week before fermentation with natural yeasts. Pieage twice a day then post ferment maceration 5 to 7 days vintage dependent. Gravity fed into a basket press then into barrel for aging. Kevin and Tricia are passionately committed to one cooper, Sirugue, based in Nuit St George. Kevin highlights that he loves the fact the staves are air-dried for a minimum of 4 years before they are used for the barrels, giving the wood time to season and low toasting. 1/4 to 1/3 new oak for the elevage of each wine, 20 months approx total aging, no racking at any stage until bottling and under gravity.
About this wine: The 2024 Estate is assembled from selected barrels across Lodestone, Hommage and Garamond, expressing the Hurley Vineyard terroir as a whole. A difficult spring, wind and rain through November at flowering, kept yields low across the estate. What followed was near-ideal ripening conditions through January to March, with an orderly harvest in late February, a week or so ahead of average. Kevin and Tricia consider these among the finest wines they have made.
Hand-picked fruit arrives to the winery, grapes cooled overnight before 100% destemmed whole berries, no crushing or whole-bunch, into open-top fermenters. Pre-ferment cold soak of approximately one week before fermentation with natural yeasts. Pigeage twice a day then post-ferment maceration 5 to 7 days vintage dependent. Gravity fed into a basket press then into 228ltr barrel for ageing. Kevin and Tricia are passionately committed to one cooper, Sirugue, based in Nuits-Saint-Georges. Kevin highlights that he loves the fact the staves are air-dried for a minimum of 4 years before use, giving the wood time to season and low toasting. 25% new oak for the élevage, approx. 20 months total ageing, no racking at any stage until bottling under gravity.
“This is mid-garnet and has a heady and pristine nose of black cherries and pomegranate with the perfume of roses and vanilla supported by a little earth underneath. The medium-bodied palate is super silky and clean with flavours of cherries and spice that are focussed and penetrating rather than robust and bold. The tannins are very fine and, in structure, this wine is well framed rather than tightly bound. The racy natural acidity drives the wine along a straight line from front to back towards a flaring, long finish of black cherries and dark spice. To 2035.” – Kevin Bell – Winemaker & Owner
95 points, Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front “There’s complexity to this release, there’s a silken feel to it, and most importantly there’s a lovely even glide throughout, the latter extending appreciably through the finish. I wish that I could leave the review there, because that’s all anyone needs to know. But some people like to hear individual flavour descriptors, so here goes: undergrowth, toast, a bell clear expression of red cherry, a saucy smokiness, rose petals with a gentle decay to them, whispers of dry tobacco. Tannin is fine, just assertive enough, and effectively works as a conduit to the progress of the flavour ongoing. For reasons of complexity, length and mouthfeel, I would place this among the best Hurley Vineyard wines that I’ve tried.”
94 points, Jane Faulkner, Halliday Wine Companion “A rather pretty estate offering with a pale ruby hue. Light, delicate aromas of florals, cherries and pips, mint and a hint of warm earth. Flavours are equally mild. Feathery fine tannins and acidity make this a drink-now option.”
RRP $84 Our Special Price $69.99 when you buy 6 or more of this wine.
