chalk hill

The annual cycle of a winemaker is certainly a curious one. There's no denying though, that vintage is one of the most exciting times of the year. Organisation of machinery, pickers, transport, staff, barrels, storage, tanks, meals, sleep is key but nothing comes close to the final hours of checking Baumé levels and waiting for the final breath from Mother Nature signalling removal of the wonderful juicy fruit from the vines, often under the cover of darkness. There are those who irrigate and those who don't; those who spray and those who won't, old oak, new oak, French oak, American oak, timing and terroir - and for all of these exciting reasons, each glorious bottle of wine you encounter is different to the one even 100 metres down the road. Where years ago growers would leave the grapes on the vines as long as possible as to yield maximum alcohol and natural sugars from our Australian sun, winemakers are leaning towards fresher, more aromatic blends meaning grapes are lifted

Spring time and sangiovese are as good a pairing as David Bowie and Major Tom, something different yet it warms the cockles of your taste-buds. Chalk Hill Sangiovese 2013 is a bright, strong red colour with dark cherries and dried flowers on the nose. The beer while cooking had gone down well but I felt like a wine that wasn’t too big or bold would be a good addition to meal time. The tannins were firm so I double decanted it which opened up the dark cherries from the nose to a delicious blackforest cake on the palate. I had enough ingredients to make a second burger but decided that a fourth glass of the Chalk Hill Sangiovese would be my dessert. Finishing the bottle was a good choice. Make a good choice for yourself and buy half a dozen for spring and summer time. Chalk Hill, you have really made the grade. [caption id="attachment_1406" align="aligncenter" width="480"]

I love people who jump in and then find out how cold the water is, people who listen to that obscure concept album from an unknown Swedish black metal act before judging it. And I really love people who put their faith in a wine tasting where there is very little Shiraz and no Cabernet, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay or Riesling within cooee! In Europe this would have been a wine tasting, here in Adelaide it was a showcase of the less known! And as the many people who rocked into the National Wine Centre on Saturday came with eager faces it was clear that people are ready or at the least interested in something new. With help from some friends at Lino Ramble, 919 Wines, Chalk Hill, Coriole and Geoff Hardy we drew up a set list that included Dolcetto, Teroledgo, Petit Manseng, GSM’s and Rousanne Marsanne Viognier amongst others. For good measure the guys at Chalk hill (in between trying to stitch up Andy from Lino with a very very peppery - literally - glass of wine!) were kind enough