Description
Winemaker Adam Barton after working for Scarpantoni (McLaren Vale), Rolf Binder (Barossa), Wynns Coonawarra Estate and iconic Bonny Doon (California) wasted no time to complete a winemaking degree at Adelaide University. Atlas Wines began on a 26-acre block of land, a vineyard planted with Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon, on the eastern slopes of the Clare Valley. The year was 2007. Adam Barton and Amy Lane made an investment in Clare and an investment in their future. Their vision for Atlas was pretty simple: to produce great wine from the highest-quality fruit from vineyards with exceptional provenance. Adam has come to understand the complexity and diversity of the Clare Valley, and how the unique characteristics of different sites produce fruit with distinctive qualities. It’s these qualities that they have sought to express through the wines they have made. As such, the Atlas house style is a carefully composed mosaic of the region. It is a true boutique producer. The red wines, sourced primarily from White Hut in the north and Leasingham in the south, are elegant yet powerful, and well structured; the whites, sourced from several sites at Watervale are finely structured, aromatic and pure.
Not surprising James Halliday rated them a 5 Red Star Winery saying “...The quality of the wines is extraordinarily good and extraordinarily consistent.”
About this wine from the winemaker: “The fruit for this wine was grown at the Hill Smith Vineyard at Woodside in the Adelaide Hills. The vines at this east-facing vineyard grow in alluvial loam, limestone, shale and quartz, at an altitude of around 400m. Thanks to near-perfect weather, 2022 promises to be one of the best Adelaide Hills vintages in recent memory.
“Our approach was to celebrate this special parcel of fruit from an exceptional vineyard, not force it into a preconceived style. Grapes were hand-picked and whole-bunch pressed, and the juice went straight from the press to French oak puncheons for wild fermentation on full solids. Post ferment, the barrels were topped (no malolactic fermentation) and lees stirred for 9 months to build texture, interest and complexity, prior to blending and bottling.
“This wine is pale straw gold, and displays aromas of bright white nectarine, melon and grapefruit, with hints of nougat and brioche supported with some toasty oak character. The palate is refined and elegant with flavours of white peach and meyer lemon fruit balanced by creamy lees texture, fine acidity and some smoky, nutty oak complexity leading to a crisp and refreshing finish.” 12.5% alc.
Review for 2022 … 93 points, Gary Walsh, The Wine Front “White peach, grapefruit, almond meal, a little lime and cheese rind. It’s juicy and grapefruity, lemon peel, offers some nutty/creamy richness, but has an excellent cut of acidity, sensible toasty/spicy oak is in the mix, and the finish is bright and long, some pleasant lime rind bitterness and crunch to close. Nice wine. Lots of energy and character.”
92 points, Mike Bennie, Halliday Wine Companion “Quite the feast here. Aromas of nectarine, nougat, mandarin and Parmesan cheese. The palate is quite rich but with a pleasing vein of briny, minerally acidity a cut and thrust amongst riper stone fruits, nougat and toasty elements. There’s a sense of complexity here, and great balance despite the generosity of flavours going on. Good stuff.”
RRP $35 Our Special Price $28.99 when you buy 6 or more of this wine.
