THE WINES
2023 DOTT. PROSECCO
MURRAY DARLING, VIC
Prosecco needs little introduction. It hails from the Veneto in the foothills between the Dolomite mountains and the Adriatic Sea near Venice in North Eastern Italy. This attractive, appealing sparkling wine has historically been made in various sparkling wines methods, often made ‘Contadino’ style (col fondo), charmat, carbonated as well as still wine. Its popularity in recent years is for good reason, mostly due to it’s delicious and approachable nature.
Chalmers imported Prosecco through the Dr. Rod connection with VCR together with our first vine imports selected in 1998, decades before the variety and wine style had seen the international popularity it has today. It’s midlate ripening behaviour is a benefit for our warmer climate viticulture. Prosecco’s flavour ripeness at lower sugar levels as well as our sandy soils and limestone of the Murray Darling region vineyard promotes pristine and pure fruit flavours also favourable for crafting fresh, sparkling wine.
Our is Prosecco is typically harvested in mid-late February, over two seperate harvests approximately 10 days apart to allow subtle complexities to the finished wine. The two individual harvests are pressed into stainless steel for cool, natural ferments on solids. After some maturation on fine lees in stainless steel it is bottled early in the year of production for ultimate freshness in bottle.
The 2023 Dott. Prosecco is a refreshingly crisp and sezty sparkling wine with fragrant apple blossom, kaffir lime, Nashi pear and a chalky personality. Pale in the glass with a delicate fizz, this wine is drier than most with a lovely gentle texture and moreish finish.
2022 DOTT. MALVASIA ISTRIANA
HEATHCOTE, VIC
Considered the finest quality member of the vast Malvasia family, Malvasia Istriana hails from Friuli where it makes fine, elegant, aromatic and mineral driven wines. It is mainly grown on clay/lime soils at low elevation in Friuli but it is said to produce the best results in the free draining gravelly plains of Friuli Grave or on harder hillside sites where the variety’s natural vigour is tamed.
Chalmers introduced a selection of Malvasia Istriana to Australia in the late 1990s. The first table wine was made from this clone in 2005, then a passito dessert wine in 2009 called Aurora. After more encouraging results from the grape in the 2013 #bucketwine project, Chalmers decided to plant it at Heathcote, designated the Rod Bonfiglioli block which features six North Eastern Italian varieties.
The 2022 Malvasia Istriana was picked on the 28th February, whole bunch pressed, chilled overnight and pressed into tank for a cool, natural fermentation on fine solids. After maturation on fine lees for 6 months, it is hand bottled with no fining or filtration and minimal sulphur additions.
With a touch of suspension in the wine, its pale straw appearance leads your interest and intrigue. The nose shows the cooler vintage with lemon pith, green apple and pear, chalk and a freshly made daisy chain. In the mouth there’s an added texture than previous years, a combination of the unfiltered suspension and the longer hang time from the 2022 harvest. It’s all William Pears, flesh and skin, pink grapefruit pith, white pepper and wholemeal flour, with a fine grip and finish it actual feels a little skinsy.
2021 DOTT. RIBOLLA GIALLA
HEATHCOTE, VIC
Ribolla Gialla, or Ribuele as it is now known in Italy, hails from Friuli. It’s the basis of now iconic cult wines coming from the area along the Slovenian border where it is often made on skins and sometimes in Amphorae by winemakers who’ve inspired the recent growth of the natural wine movement. In other parts of Friuli it’s made as a crisp, clean and somewhat aromatic white wine along with, more recently, sparkling wines – piggy-backingon the success of neighbouring Veneto’s Prosecco.
A more recent addition to the Dott. range, Ribolla Gialla is fast becoming very comfortable amongst it’s siblings. Usually planted in the cool areas of Italy, it’s adapted itself well to the northern Heathcote vineyard with its late ripening, naturally high acidity and lower alcohols, a huge benefit for warmer climate viticulture.
Harvest is usually around mid-February, the fruit is chilled overnight, pressed into tank and naturally fermented on fine solids, extended lees contact, hand bottled with no filtering, no fining and minimal sulphur addition.
The 2021 vintage is really showing up to be a ripper, with great purity and intensity of fruit, elegance and restraint, lively, persistent and looking like it’ll go the distance. This year shows lemon drops, lemon pith and cool minerality of talc and wet river stones. There’s still that green fruit element of feijoa and guava, coupled with ripe Meyer lemon and fresh lychee. The palate is where you see that more classic Ribolla come through, waxy, slippery with mealy texture and grip, zesty acidity and fine finish.
2021 DOTT. PAVANA
HEATHCOTE, VIC
The rarest grape in the Chalmers collection, Pavana caught Dr. Rod’s attention during a mid-1990s tenure at Udine University. Only a handful of pavana vineyards now remain in Italy, mostly in Valsugana which bridges Trentino and Veneto, but it was once widely planted in these areas when the region was part of Austria where much of the pavana wine was consumed. Being a light, perfumed and herbal red it wasn’t favoured by the Italian’s once the region passed to Italian rule so pavana became unviable and was removed from most vineyards.
Pavana joined the Chalmers collection in 2000 and after its proving ground through the Chalmers Project Label in Merbein producing super pretty light red fruited wines, it finally got the gong to be planted in Heathcote. Here it took on some more muscular tones due to the soil influence while still retaining the charm and delicacy of those wines so endearing in the project wines. The fact that this variety was singled out by Dr. Rod during the 1990s at a time when big, concentrated, heavily oaked reds were in fashion is a testament to his foresight.
2021 vintage was perfect for Pavana, naturally being a late ripener, it was hand picked late in the season, chilled overnight, with whole berry wild fermentation for 20 days. Basket pressed and kept in tank to retain optimum varietal expression and aged in bottle for 10 months before release.
For a variety that looks more like Pinot Noir and coming from a warm to hot climate like Heathcote, its future here in Australia we hope is a bright one! Red cherry, plum and cinnamon spice, vanilla bean and a muscular perfume. The palate is light on its feet, with ripe, bright, fresh and crunchy red berry fruit, a fine earth grip and delicate finish, bring on the duck!
2022 DOTT. NEBBIOLO
HEATHCOTE, VIC
Nebbiolo is the hero grape variety behind those ethereal world class and super age worthy wines from ‘Barolo’ and Barbaresco’ based in Piedmonte, Italy. These wines are structured and aged in barrel/bottle for 4-5 years before released, whereas younger Nebbiolo from this region called Langhe Nebbiolo, can be bright, fresh and juicier than its brothers and sisters. You can also find Nebbiolo from surrounding regions like Valtellina who produce more delicate and prettier styles now finding their niche in the wine world too.
Chalmers introduced a selection of Nebbiolo clones to Australia in 2001. The clone used for this wine is the MAT10 clone which was preferred as it’s later ripening and retains higher acidity, making it better suited for the harsher climate in Heathcote. The vineyard was first planted in 2019 and has found its way into the Dott. range, inspired by Rod Bonfiglioli, that feature Northern Italian varieties.
Dott. Nebbiolo was picked in late March, destemmed with whole berry wild fermentation in tank with light pump overs. It spent a total on 28 days on skins and aged on fine lees in both stainless steel tank and old barrels. The wine is non fined, non filtered, vegan friendly and hand bottled and labelled on site at the winery.
The 2022 Dott. Nebbiolo is pale rose in colour with a little brick tinge. Its nose has lifted rose petals, wild strawberries, Damson plum, charry earth and a muscular perfume. The palate is classic young Nebbiolo, a core of red berries and lifted red florals with dry fine dusty tannins and pleasantly persistent.
DOTT. SCHIOPPETTINO
HEATHCOTE, VIC
Almost extinct in the early 20th Century, Schioppettino was lovingly revived in the 1970s and now flourishes mostly in Prepotto along the Judrio Valley close to the Slovenian border in the warm, temperate and rainy Colli Orientali del Friuli. The detailed variety is prized for its overt and distinctive white pepper and spice notes and firm but fine tannins.
On a 2015 trip to visit Rauscedo nursery Kim and Tennille Chalmers were in a restaurant in Cividale del Friuli when they were approached by the President of the Association of Schioppettino producers of Prepotto who had overheard them speaking about the grape in English. A wonderful and inspiring exchange ensued with the local experts fascinated to hear of Australian Schioppettino and giving hearty approval for the selection of the Heathcote site as ‘perfect’ terroir and climate for their beloved grape which needs good air drainage, warm days, cool nights and mineral soils.
Dott. Schioppettino is picked later in the season, chilled overnight then destemmed into open fermenter for a whole berry wild ferment. It is basket pressed and racked into a combination of stainless steel and old French oak barrique. After maturation it is hand bottled on site at Merbein approximately 12 months after harvest.
Schioppettino is bursting with white pepper and Dutch speculaas spice aromas with a hint of jasmine and woodsy notes. The medium bodied palate reiterates the anise, cinnamon and cardamom spices with cedar oil, blackcurrant and Davidson plum flavours supported by medium grain
tannins giving a lingering dry finish.