With
a string of eye-watering scores from Eyebrow Trailblazer of the Year (and
leading Aussie wine critic) James Halliday, Garagiste is one of the most
exciting producers in cool-climate Mornington Peninsula. It's the work of two
collaborating winemakers, Barnaby Flanders and Cam Marshall. Flanders’ goal is
to work with the best fruit and best vineyard plots in Tuerong and Moorooduc,
to the north of the peninsula (sandy soils), the more central sub-regions off
Merricks and Merricks North (brown loam/red volcanic soils) and the more
elevated and southern Red Hill and Main Ridge (vibrant red volcanic
soils). Minimal intervention is the name of the game - top quality fruit
left to ferment and age without interference on its lees. The results are
invariably good and often stunning. As the scores each vintage from Mr Halliday
attest, Garagiste is pretty much as good as Mornington Chardonnay gets. Le
Stagiare is its entry-level range but the quality level remains bar-settingly
high.
How it's made:
The fruit (all P58
clone Chardonnay) is hand-sorted in the vineyard. In the winery, after gentle
pressing of whole bunches, the cloudy juice is transferred to a mixture of new
and old puncheons and fermented using ambient yeasts. The wine is then matured
on its lees in barrel for nine months.
Critic note:
"This sets the pulse racing with its linearity, crisp acidity and extraordinary length. But there's a wealth of flavour too - the white stone fruit, citrus zest and juice, the kick of spice and a just the right amount of lees-creamy influence to add another layer of complexity but not weight. Oh and a bargain."
96 points, Halliday Wine Companion 2018