Description
Garagiste is definitely one of Mornington Peninsula’s brightest rising stars! Named in honour of the ‘Garagiste’ – ‘garage’ vintners of Bordeaux who thumbed their nose at the rigid traditions of chateaux, winemaker Barney Flanders makes succulent, finely tuned and elegantly crafted cool-climate Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris, highlighting the subtleties of the Peninsula’s different sub-regions with small batches of very limited and high quality wines. Fruit is sourced predominantly from highly prized Merricks Grove vineyard, Silverwood vineyard (Balnarring) and Hugh Robinson vineyard in Moorooduc. Since their first release in 2006 their wines are highly sought after, highly regarded and like their labels, very cool!
The Pinot vines at Merricks are 28 years old and sit on grey loams and red ferrosols, but with a north-facing aspect. Yields were slightly higher than in 2023, and the fruit’s integrity meant it retained balance with Barney’s preferred inclusion of 33% bunches. The winemaking is, as always, pretty hands-off: natural fermentation as bunches and whole berries, with gentle extraction and 10 months in 20% new oak.
Barney’s touch with whole bunches is notable and, as usual, it’s seamlessly integrated, providing savoury balance to the trademark power and intensity of the Merricks fruit. It’s very deep and layered, full of berries, spice, flowers and licks of minerality. This is serious (and seriously brilliant) Pinot, combining grippy structure with fresh lift, gliding weight and lingering length. This will get even better with air and—why not?—roast duck.
95 points, Jane Faulkner, Halliday Wine Companion “A distinctive trait of the Garagiste pinots, they are savoury. Sure there’s a core of good fruit, but the cherry accent is merely one component; there’s the spice, the woodsy, cedary oak, all integrated, the ferrous character, almost stony, the pleasantly drying tannins and flourish of fine acidity to close. It’s complete. It’s also charmingly aromatic.”
95 points, Gary Walsh, The Wine Front “This is a rich, spicy and cherry laden wine. There’s some orange peel and amaro twang, an earthy spice. a bit of empty chocolate box, a cool mineral thing happening, a dusty and graphite grip to tannin, juicy dark cherry and grainy tannin on a finish of excellent length. Crisp, flavoursome and energetic. Sappy and wheaty. Very good Pinot here.”
RRP $59 Our Special Price $46.50 when you buy 6 or more of this wine
