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2018 Shadowfax Little Hampton Pinot Noir
Shadowfax
100% Pinot Noir from the Little Hampton vineyard near Trentham in the Macedon Ranges. This site sits at 730m above sea level and is one of the coolest in the Macedon Ranges. Good spring rains set the season up well. Soil moisture continued through to harvest. The dry summer allowed us to harvest fruit on phenolic and flavour ripeness alone, a rare treat in the Macedon Ranges.
Fruit was handpicked in pristine condition and we carefully sorted and destemmed it with 100% whole berries going into small open fermenters. Natural fermentation occurred with daily hand plunging to extract fine tannins and flavour. After two weeks on skins the wine was pressed then racked into second-use French hogsheads and puncheons where it rested and grew. The wine was then blended and filtered prior to bottling in February 2019.
Deep purple with a deep crimson hue. Floral violets, lavender and rose petal waft from the glass, bolstered by plum and raspberry fruits. Further complexities reveal themselves, such as cardamom, cassis and sarsaparilla. Mineral aspects including gunpowder and graphite provide intrigue. Given time in the glass the Little Hampton’s signature aromatics intensify and seduce. Raspberry, plum and cherry sap fall immediately onto the palate, along with savoury notes of game, graphite and white pepper. A focused and mineral core has drive, vibrancy and poise. Fine and lacy tannins frame the complex cardamom spice and subtle fruits. The wine has energy and lift that can only been seen in high-altitude, cool-climate Pinot Noir. – Al Timms, Shadowfax
October, 2019
Royal Melbourne Wine Awards
August, 2019
Sydney Royal Wine Show
January, 2020
huonhooke.com
96 points
Deepish red colour with a trace of purple. The bouquet shows lots of smoky char and stemmy characters skilfully intertwined, foresty and whole-bunchy with a sweetly-perfumed lift which is very fetching. It's medium- to full-bodied and loaded with dried flower notes and some sinewiness from acidity. The flavour is delicious and very pinoty.
November, 2019
The Wine Front
92+ points
It’s a cranberried wine. Washy. Spicy too, gently autumnal, smoky, fleshed with red cherries, just a little reductive. A pinch of this and a pinch of that. It carries dry, chalky tannin; it’s strung on a taut line of acidity; it’s measured out in coffee spoons. Both delicacy and perfume are evident. Time will be kind.
Standard Bottle Out of Stock
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