Honey Moon Vineyard

HONEY MOON VINEYARD ADELAIDE HILLS ROSÉ 2008
HONEY MOON ADELAIDE HILLS CHARDONNAY 2008
HONEY MOON VINEYARD ADELAIDE HILLS PINOT NOIR 2007
HONEY MOON VINEYARD ADELAIDE HILLS SHIRAZ 2007
HONEY MOON VINEYARD ADELAIDE HILLS VINTAGE PORT 2007

HONEY MOON VINEYARD ADELAIDE HILLS ROSÉ 2008

2008 Vintage
Dry warm to hot days were relieved by cool nights at Echunga, allowing moderate to slow ripening and great intensity of flavour development – ideal for red and rosé wine making.

Winemaking
Pinot Noir and Shiraz grapes were harvested by hand, chilled and then gently pressed to give fragrant, flavoursome and delicate juice. Great care was taken throughout the winemaking process to retain these characters in the final wine.

We aimed to produce a fresh, lively style of rosé with definitive red fruit flavours, where the flavours of Shiraz could be supported by the palate length that Pinot can bring. Further, we wanted this wine to have natural fruit sweetness, dryness on the palate and a crisp acid finish.

We believe that the key to making high quality Rosé lies in the fruit selection and the gentle method of production. The grapes that go into the Honey Moon Vineyard Rosé are of the highest quality and could make fine quality dry red table wines, but we choose to allocate some of this fruit to make our Rosé.

Tasting Notes
Appearance: Bright salmon pink with delicate ruby hues
Aroma: Fresh raspberry and soft spicy notes from Shiraz complimented by deep strawberry aromas from the Pinot Noir component.
Palate: A vibrantly fresh palate with strawberries and raspberry flavours plus citrus notes. A refreshing acid structure ensures these flavours live long on the palate and result in a clean, crisp finish.
Serving and food matching: Serve chilled. The Honey Moon Vineyard Rosé 2008 is well suited to light dishes such as entrées, salads, seafood and white meats. Also has the structure and fruit depth to do very well with spicy Indian food and asian-style cuisine. Very nice, too, with toasted sandwiches (according to customer feedback).

Awards/reviews
Silver Medal, Australian Small Winemakers Show, Stanthorpe, 2008, Class 51
Bronze Medal, National Cool Climate Wine Show, Bathurst, 2008, Class 2050
Bronze Medal, Adelaide Hills Wine Show, 2008, Class 6, equal top wine in class
Philip White, 94 points, The Independent Weekly 21-27 Nov 2008

HONEY MOON ADELAIDE HILLS CHARDONNAY 2008

The Adelaide Hills region grows some beautiful Chardonnay fruit and we were fortunate to have the opportunity in 2008 to experiment with making a barrel-fermented style of Chardonnay, using really exquisite fruit and gracefully old, fine French oak. Only five barriques made.

Winemaking
The Chardonnay grapes for this wine were sourced from a high-quality vineyard in Lobethal, which is planted to Chardonnay Bernard clones 76 and 96.
Clusters of grapes were hand picked from dappled and shaded zones of the grape wine canopy, yielding a parcel of fruit in perfect condition.

The fruit was chilled before whole bunch pressing, after which the juice was transferred with minimal clarification for fermentation in old Allier and Troncais (French oak) barriques. Malo-lactic fermentation in barrel and maturation on yeast lees has created a Chardonnay with a creamy texture and refined varietal flavour.

Tasting Notes
Appearance: Brilliant light yellow with intense green hue
Aroma: Fresh citrus, granny smith apple and pear aromas are complimented by delicate nutty oak characters.
Palate: Vibrant, citrus flavours mingle with a creamy texture and delicate oak flavours to create a young wine with building complexity. A high acid structure endows the wine with a clean, refreshing mineral character and ensures the wine’s ability to age gracefully in the bottle.
Serving and food matching: Serve chilled. The Honey Moon Chardonnay 2008 is well suited to light dishes such as salads, seafood and white meats.
Cellaring: Will continue to evolve for at least 5 years in good cellar conditions.

Awards/reviews:

Bronze Medal, Adelaide Hills Wine Show, 2009, class 4
Bronze Medal, National Cool Climate Wine Show, 2009, class 3028
“Bright straw green; elegant, finely structured wine with nectarine and melon fruit cradled in subtle French oak; a classic example of winemaking restraint. 92 points. James Halliday Wine Companion 2010 Edition

HONEY MOON VINEYARD ADELAIDE HILLS PINOT NOIR 2007

2007 Vintage
The conditions were ideal for ripening red grapes in particular. Dry warm days, followed by cool nights – typical of our site in Echunga – favoured moderate to slow ripening with great intensity of flavour development, yielding excellent quality grapes at harvest. Canopy was very good and looked a picture at harvest in March, dotted with small cherry-coloured bunches.

Winemaking
Clones were kept separate at harvest and fermented as separate parcels. After a long cold soak, a variety of cultured yeast and indigenous strains were used in fermentation, which was carried out in small open fermenters. Typically ferments peaked at 30C and were hand plunged 2 – 3 times per day. Some ferments contained a proportion of whole bunches. After primary fermentation the wines were pressed off skins and racked into new and old French barriques (16% new) – oak types being Allier and Burgundian. After 15 months in oak the wines were bottled.

Tasting Notes
Appearance: Bright scarlet red with a light ruby hue
Aroma: Fresh raspberry, plums and subtle spicy oak give a definitive cool climate Pinot aroma
Palate: Delicate red fruit flavours contribute fruit sweetness to the mid palate. French oak gives a subtle spicy/ nutty character, which compliments a velvety and long tannin structure. This wine has attractive Pinot varietal flavour and tannin structure. While drinking well now, it will continue to evolve in the bottle over the next 5 years.
Serving and food matching: Well suited to medium weight dishes based on poultry and veal. Duck is a superb match. It also does well with fresh, moderately spicy Asian-influenced dishes.

Awards/reviews:

Gold Medal, Adelaide Hills Wine Show, 2009, class 8
Silver Medal, National Cool Climate Wine Show, Bathurst, 2009, class 7030
“Complex fruit aromas and flavours range through plum, black cherry and warm spices, the texture tightening nicely on the back-palate and finish; the after-taste lingers for some time, continuing to impress.” 94 points. James Halliday Wine Companion 2010 Edition
Philip White, 93+ points, The Independent Weekly 21-27 Nov 2008

HONEY MOON VINEYARD ADELAIDE HILLS SHIRAZ 2007

2007 VINTAGE
The conditions were ideal for ripening red grapes in particular. Dry warm days, followed by cool nights – typical of our site in Echunga – favoured moderate to slow ripening with great intensity of flavour development, yielding excellent quality grapes at harvest. The Shiraz vines seemed to thrive in these conditions and the ripe grapes retained freshness as well as good fruit flavour.

Winemaking
Grapes were hand harvested and chilled as whole clusters. After partial crushing and destemming followed by a long cold soak, a variety of cultured yeast strains were used in fermentation, which was carried out in small open fermenters. Typically ferments peaked at 28C and were hand plunged 2 – 3 times per day. After primary fermentation the wines were pressed off skins and racked into new and old French barriques and hogsheads (30% new) – oak types being Allier and Burgundian, and Troncais. After 15 months in oak the wines were bottled.

Tasting Notes
Appearance: Bright magenta red with a deep ruby hue
Aroma: Fresh ripe raspberry, and spicy, peppery characters give a definitive cool climate Shiraz aroma
Palate: Rich red fruit flavours of raspberry and blackberry contribute fruit sweetness to the mid palate. French oak gives a spicy, cedar character, which compliments a velvety tannin structure. This wine shows refreshing cool climate Shiraz flavours and structure. While drinking well now, it will continue to evolve in the bottle over the next 10 years.
Serving and food matching: Well suited to medium to heavier weight dishes based on poultry and veal and beef. Very good with aged cheddar.

Awards/reviews:

Gold Medal and Trophy, Adelaide Hills Wine Show, 2009, class 12
Adelaide Review Hot 100 2009 Best Adelaide Hills Shiraz
“A very well made juicy, spicy wine; great thrust to the light- to medium-bodied palate with small red and black berry fruits; quality French oak and fine tannins.” 93 points. James Halliday Wine Companion 2010 Edition
Gold Medal, Adelaide Hills Wine Show, 2008, class 11
Silver Medal, National Cool Climate Wine Show, Bathurst, 2008, class 2070
Philip White, 93+++ points, The Independent Weekly 21-27 Nov 2008

HONEY MOON VINEYARD ADELAIDE HILLS VINTAGE PORT 2007

2007 Vintage
With such favourable ripening conditions for reds we decided to keep a small parcel of Shiraz for a vintage port. We felt that the resultant fruit – so well-flavoured and with good acid – warranted the effort involved!

Winemaking
Shiraz grapes left to ripen late into the season were hand harvested and foot trodden in an open fermenter in the traditional Portuguese way of making vintage port. About half way through fermentation the must was fortified with wood aged brandy spirit.

This fortification was done while the must still contained skins, seeds and stems, again a most traditional technique. The must was pressed off after fortification and matured for 8 months before bottling in December 2007.

Tasting Notes
Appearance: Bright magenta red with a deep ruby hue
Aroma: Ripe raspberry, and spicy Shiraz aromas are combined with strong, liquorice and chocolate notes from the brandy spirit.
Palate: Rich red fruit flavours of blackberry and spice are integrating with the characteristic wood aged brandy flavours. The wine is quite dry on the finish in the Portuguese style at 3.6 Baumé. Velvety tannins add to the wine’s complexity and ensure it will live for many years and improve in the bottle as all good vintage ports do.
Serving and food matching: The Honey Moon Vineyard Vintage Port 2007 is ideally served at the end of the meal with cheese, nuts and dried fruits. Like all vintage ports this wine should be decanted prior to serving.

Awards/reviews
Silver Medal, 2008 Adelaide Hills Wine Show, Class 16

PO Box 544 Echunga South Australia 5133
Telephone/Facsimile
+61 8 8388 8384