Quarry Hill Canberra District Pinot Noir 2006
I like what Quarry Hill are doing. The way they have set their prices and the quality that you get for this is quite amazing. Franco and myself had this alongside the Ata Rangi and we actually preferred drinking the Quarry Hill.
It has everything I look for in Australian Pinot Noir. Strawberries and rose petals on the nose; the palate is well put together with lovely dark cherry fruit, plum, rose petals and some lovely savoury tannins to finish. A great addition to the sub $20 Pinot Noir market. 91 points Anthony D'Anna
I know almost nothing about Quarry Hill pinot noir, except that it’s a new wine from the Canberra District and is made in very small batches, some of which have about 5 percent whole bunches included in the ferment.
This is a polarising style of wine but it happens to be right up my alley. It tastes of both savoury and sweet meats matched to red and dark cherried fruit flavour, and on top of that there’s quite a bit of peppery spice. It’s one of those wines that straddles various styles of cool climate pinot noir and shiraz at once, in a good way. Though of course this is a 100 percent varietal pinot. I like the tannin and the flavours and the wine’s overall juicy acidity. An excellent drink in my books. Drink : 2009 - 2013 91 points Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front
5% whole bunches were used in the ferment, with gentle egg fining to preserve the subtle finish. The Pinot Noir has aromas of mixed spice, plum and cherry fruit and foresty, minty overtones. The palate shows fresh spicy red plums and red berries, with some sweet oak. Bright acids complement the fruit characters, and it flows along well with a good finish. It works well with a wide variety of foods. 13.8% alc.
Quarry Hill is a boutique, family owned and run vineyard situated just outside Canberra and is part of the Canberra cool-climate region, with elevations ranging from 630m up to 655m. Established in 1999, it was named after a section of the property that provided rock for the construction of the Barton Highway. Rock is indeed a feature of the property, which has a diversity of geology including granite, quartz, limestone and shale.
Another distinctive feature is the terraces that have been cut into the steep slope of the hillside, the easterly aspect of these stepped, terraced rows provides excellent morning sun exposure, and by management of the vine canopy on the western side, the intense afternoon sun can be controlled.
The steepness of the vineyard has made it exceptionally frost-resistant, and the rocky soil ensures good drainage. Warm days and very cool nights provide slow ripening fruit, retaining good acids and aromatics.
The first plantings at Quarry Hill were of Pinot Noir, which were soon followed with Sauvignon Blanc and Shiraz. Approximately 4.5 hectares of grapes have been planted including a half hectare of Tempranillo and Albariño which was added in 2006.
The site is naturally low yielding and throughout the life of the vineyard, the emphasis has been on producing high quality grapes for delivery to some of the region's leading winemakers, and for our own vintages.
