Description
Port Phillip Estate is a specialist Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir producer located on the Mornington Peninsula, one of Australia’s foremost cool-climate maritime wine regions. Meticulous sustainable viticulture and sensitive minimalist winemaking produce site-expressive wines of elegance, complexity and structure. Port Phillip Estate wines are domain grown, vinified and bottled.
“We endeavour to grow the highest quality fruit that expresses the terroir of each vineyard. Our sustainable farming practices are driven by the belief that the health of our vineyard soils, and thus vines, underpin wine quality. All grapes are hand pruned, shoot thinned and hand picked.” Winemaker Glen Hayley
“Since becoming chief winemaker at Port Phillip Estate a few years ago, Glen Hayley has taken the estate’s already good wines to new levels of quality and detail.” Max Allen
The Port Phillip Estate ‘Red Hill’ vineyard is located on the Mornington Peninsula at Red Hill, on Eocene volcanic soils. Our wines are made from domain grown, handpicked grapes and aim to manifest terroir: the integration of our geology and soils with the macroclimate of our region, the mesoclimates of the various sites within our vineyard and the weather of the annual grape growing season. Our cultural operations in the vineyard and practices in the winery endeavour to articulate these unique characteristics diligently, respectfully and without artifice.
The Chardonnay block at Port Phillip Estate’s Red Hill vineyard consists of three parcels. The largest area (1.3 hectares) is the oldest, at 31 years. A smaller area of 0.3 hectares was planted seven years later. A third area of more closely planted vines was established in 2013. The Red Hill vineyard is dominated by red basalt, yet the Chardonnay block is planted in an area of sandy grey loam over yellow clay. The site has deep soils with great water-holding capacity, so the vines require very little irrigation throughout Summer. Nestled on a hill facing East, the block’s aspect exposes the fruit to maximum morning sunshine but protects the fruit from the afternoon Summer sun, allowMoring it to ripen in a cooler environment. The cool evenings of Red Hill’s maritime climate and cold air flow down the hill help maintain the wine’s hallmark acidity. The grapes were gently whole-bunch pressed directly into French oak barriques (15% of which were new) and fermentation occurred spontaneously with ambient yeasts. Following fermentation the wine was aged on lees (without battonage) for 11 months. It was bottled without fining and with minimal filtration.
New 2024 Chardonnay is here and it sure is on song !
Review for 2023 – 94 points, Gary Walsh, The Wine Front “A blend of three parcels of the vineyard, the oldest being 31 years, the youngest planted in 2013 … This is packed with flavour. A mix of peach, grapefruit, leaning towards something tropical – fresh pineapple perhaps, some struck match, aniseed and spicy biscuit oak. Intense and juicy, a bright cut of grapefruit acidity through more creamy and nutty flavours, with a bold finish of excellent length. It’s quite a lot of wine, but it’s very good.”
RRP $46 **Our Special Price $36.99 when you buy 6 or more of this wine**
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