Matt Harrop shows off Macedon with these new releases – and they’re a jubilant celebration of region and variety. What strikes you with both the vineyard blend and single-site incarnations of Chardonnay and Pinot is the composition. The big picture is pleasure, for sure, but the detail is spot on.
Good winter and spring rainfall set things up nicely in 2013, and then Macedon’s settled, dry spring and warm summer sealed the deal for wines that are inviting, generous and neatly structured.
The team from this James Halliday five star-rated winery sourced the fruit for both entry-level wines from the same holy trinity of vineyards as the previous year: Waterson Road, Midhill and Farrawell. Of these, Waterson Road was once again favoured for the single-vineyard Pinot Noir, while Midhill – which has been such a happy hunting ground for Shadowfax in recent times – was the source for the top Chardonnay.
In fact 2013 marks the sixth release of the Shadowfax Midhill Chardonnay, and this latest vintage won the trophy for Best Chardonnay – as well as the People’s Choice award – at the 2014 Macedon Ranges Wine Exhibition. It’s now taken out top prize no fewer than five times, which goes to show the pedigree of the vineyard and Matt Harrop’s rapport with it. James Halliday rated last year’s version 95 points, calling it a “potent and concentrated wine, its complexity burgeoning with over 12 months bottle maturation, and more to come”. He concluded: “Grapefruit zest, white peach and nectarine are cosseted by the relatively subtle French oak, and enlivened by high tensile acidity.” You can tick off all those attributes once again in 2013. Even better: the entry-level Chardonnay dances to the same tune.
Matt’s prowess with Pinot is no secret. He’s a driving force on the committee of Pinot Massif, the 15-year-old annual workshop that’s done so much to improve the breed of Victorian Pinot Noir. During the lifetime of the workshop, there can’t have been too many sub-$20 landed Pinots as complete as the 2013 Shadowfax Pinot Noir 2013. It is, quite simply, delicious to drink.
The 2013 Shadowfax Waterson Road Pinot Noir manages to kick a little harder again. The same wine from the previous vintage scored 96 from Halliday, and the comments are once again entirely apt: “Positively stacked with plum and black cherry fruit, festooned with quality French oak (new and used) and a backdrop of foresty tannins; it has impeccable balance and will be long-lived in pinot noir terms.”
Across the board these are hugely appealing wines of true class and a very strong family resemblance. Matt Harrop and Shadowfax are justly proud. People will love them.
THE WINES
2013 Shadowfax Chardonnay Macedon Ranges RRP $32
The grapes were grown on the Waterson Road, Midhill and Farrawell vineyards. All fruit was handpicked and whole-bunch pressed, then fermented in a mix of new (22%) and used French oak hogsheads, utilising the native yeast from each different vineyard. The wine remained in contact with lees for eight months before bottling on 20 May 2014.
Medium straw with a bright green edge, the nose displays pear, fig and nectarine with some mealy lees complexity and a hint of struck match. The seamless palate is long and very full, with complex flavours of pear and white peach, plus a touch of mineral complexity. Natural acidity keeps the palate structured and focused. This is a full bodied, highly flavoured wine which will continue to drink beautifully for many years.
“Quite a beauty. Macedon Ranges Chardonnay, grown on three separate vineyards.
Shadowfax has stepped up a notch or two in recent years and this is as good a proof as any. It’s super. It’s bright but flavoursome, frisky with flavour, boasts pear, grapefruit, bacony oak, stonefruit and oatmeal notes, and gives more than a nod to elegance along the way. Straight up it impresses but it sings in fine voice through to a lengthy finish. The price is more than reasonable. 95 points.” Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front
2013 Shadowfax Midhill Chardonnay Macedon Ranges RRP $52
Winner of the Best Chardonnay and People’s Choice trophies at the 2014 Macedon Ranges Wine Exhibition
Fruit was handpicked and whole-bunch pressed then fermented in used French oak hogsheads. The wine remained in contact with lees for eight months before bottling on 22nd February 2014.
It’s youthful pale straw in colour, with a green edge. The nose is complex and inviting, with lifted aromatics of guava and fig and a touch of struck match reduction. This latest release of Midhill shows the quality of the vineyard and the warmth of the season. This is a very concentrated wine, with stonefruit, fig and pear flavours enhanced with texture from extended time on lees. A full and rich expression of Chardonnay from Midhill, with similarities to Shadowfax’s excellent 2008 release.
“20-year-old vineyard at 530m. Wild-fermented. Straw-colour, excellence sense of both presence and power, grapefruit and white peach notes with inflections of chalk, spice and toast. A little more time in bottle will do it no harm. 95 points.” Halliday Wine Companion 2016
2013 Shadowfax Pinot Noir Macedon Ranges RRP $32
Grapes from the Farrawell, Midhill and Waterson Road vineyards were picked by hand and naturally fermented in open vat. Up to 50% whole bunches were used in each ferment to enhance aromatics and for structural input. The new wines were transferred to a mix of new (22%) and used French oak hogsheads for malolactic fermentation and maturation. The wine was blended and bottled without fining or filtration, on 4 February 2014.
Dense red in colour with a deep bright edge, the nose is a complex display of textbook Macedon aromatics: black cherry, red currant, some bunch-derived spice. It’s immediately mouthfilling, rich and delicious. Flavours of plum, morello cherry and Asian five spice are supported by very fine extract and lovely high-altitude acidity. It’s a beautiful Pinot Noir with length and structure to enjoy now or into the future.
“In varietal terms the value here is not to be sniffed at. It’s polished, charming, has enough power and more than enough length. It tastes of dark cherry, forest, graphite and cloves, though it’s the wine’s pretty, rose-petal notes that attract the most attention. Quite beautiful all round. 94 points.” Halliday Wine Companion 2016
2013 Shadowfax Waterson Road Pinot Noir Macedon Ranges RRP $52
All fruit was hand-picked and naturally fermented in open vat. 50% whole bunches were included in the ferment to accentuate aromatics and add structural elements. The new wine was transferred to a mix of new (33%) and used French oak hogsheads for malolactic fermentation and maturation. The wine was blended and bottled, without fining or filtration, on 22 February 2014.
It’s dense red in colour, with a deep, bright edge. On the nose it shows typical Waterson aromatics of dark cherries and black plums. A hint of attractive spice shows with time in the glass. The palate is powerful with intensity and drive. On show are black fruits, bright cherry, spice and cinnamon. The tannins are very fine and layered, building to a crescendo at the finish. Flavours follow from front to back, with wonderful flourish. A warmer expression of Waterson Road, which is so delicious now but with structure to age gracefully for a decade.
“Light colour, strong personality. Dark cherry, ground spice, mint and cloves with fragrant green herbs swaying in the background. A wine of poise, unbroken lines and fresh, satiny length. Tannin has been judged to perfection. 96 points.” Halliday Wine Companion 2016