Shadowfax and CellarHand are delighted to announce that CellarHand is the exclusive New South Wales distributor of Shadowfax wines as of Wednesday, 1st February 2017.
We’ve long enjoyed a fun and fruitful relationship with the Werribee-based estate, which produced its first wines in 1999 – the same year CellarHand was founded. This was one of the first crop of domestic producers to enter our portfolio at the turn of the century, and the winery has come on in leaps and bounds ever since. Recent years have seen especially exciting strides, with winemaker Matt Harrop refining the range and proving himself one of the smartest operators around.
An influential innovator and hugely respected member of the judging scene, Matt has well and truly proven his prowess with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. His single-vineyard Chardonnays have taken out Best Chardonnay at the Macedon Ranges Wine Exhibition no fewer than five times. He’s also 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. Over that time there won’t have been many $20 LUC Pinots to rival Matt’s 2015 Macedon blend, nor many single-site wines to match the 2015 from Shadowfax’s Little Hampton vineyard. These high-altitude plantings of Pinot Gris, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, in the chilliest region of Australia’s mainland, are the vibrant future of Australia’s cool-climate wine scene.
The counterpoint to this is the dynamic Minnow project, based around the Werribee vineyard’s southern French varieties. This is the source of bright, spicy, textured rosé and reds, with the micro-make Mondeuse immediately becoming a delicious cult hit.
“Matt Harrop and his team at the Shadowfax winery at Werribee craft excellent wines from a number of Victorian regions.” Huon Hooke
“It’s an immaculate Pinot Noir.” Campbell Mattinson on 2015 Macedon
“It’s light and fragrant, powerful and impressive – yes, all those things.” Mattinson on 2015 Little Hampton Pinot Noir
“It’s delicious and interesting to drink. It’s a ripper.” Mike Bennie on 2016 Mondeuse
“This delicious medium-bodied red is unusual in many ways.” Max Allen on 2014 Minnow