Brown Brothers Tempranillo Victoria Australia

THE WINE Tempranillo is an innovative varietal for Brown Brothers that's being released nationally for the first time due to its great success at Cellar Door. The wine has been developed in Brown Brothers Kindergarten Winery, a mini winery focused on trialling small batches of new varietal wines with big potential. In the glass this wine is a bright crimson red with aromas of red berries and plums, cassis and integrated fruit and oak. These characters follow through to the palate which has savoury characters, fine chalky tannins and firm acidity. An elegant, medium bodied style of wine that can be cellared in the medium term for 4 to 6 years from vintage. THE GRAPE VARIETY Tempranillo is said to be Spain's answer to Cabernet Sauvignon. It is the variety that puts the spine into a high proportion of Spain's most respected red wines and is the most widely planted grape variety in the highly regarded Rioja region, in the rugged north-east of the country. Its grapes are thick skinned and capable of making deep coloured, long lasting wines. Being an early ripening variety has no doubt given it an added edge and ability to thrive in the often harsh climate that predominates in the higher reaches of Rioja. TECHNICAL INFORMATION The Tempranillo grapes used to make this wine were grown at our own Heathcote Vineyard and other vineyards around Victoria. The fruit was harvested from mid March to early April at a range of baumé levels from 13.0º to 14.0º. The wine spent 12 to 18 months in a combination of new and two year old American oak barriques and puncheons before bottling. It was bottled with an alcohol of 14.0%, a pH of 3.5, and an acid level of 6.2 g/L. (12 x 75 cl)

The wine. Sangiovese is one of five of Brown Brothers Italian varieties. The wine has a bright cherry colour with medium intensity. The nose displays aromas of maraschino cherries, savoury characters and a hint of tobacco. Light cherry flavours compliment the savoury characters that carry through to the palate. With fine tannins and balanced acidity this wine is suited to early drinking. The grape variety. Sangiovese is a variety with its origins in Tuscany, Italy. It is the most widely planted variety in Italy and is a fairly vigorous variety with a spreading habit of growth. It is used in many wines of controlled appellation in Italy, sometimes alone, but quite often mixed with three or four other varieties. The most common of these is Chianti where 50-80% of the grapes used are Sangiovese. Technical information. The grapes for this wine were grown out our Heathcote vineyard located on the Mt Camel range, at Corop in central Victoria. The fruit was harvested in early to late March at 12.9º to 13.9º baumé. The wine received gentle handling with the use of a sweeper arm fermenter and 50% of the wine was left on skins post fermentation to modify the tannins. The wine then spent time older barriques and puncheons. It was bottled with an alcohol of 14.5%, a pH of 3.43 and an acid level of 5.7 g/L. (12 x 75 cl)

A delicious fresh, vibrant light-bodied red wine, perfect to sip and savour lightly chilled during the warm summer months. (12 x 75 cl)

Stylish flavours of white peaches and nectarines have the added attraction of butterscotch and creamy vanilla from oak ageing. Elegant and deeply flavoured with layers of complexity. The finish has a floral tang typical of Chardonnay from the King Valley. (12 x 75 cl)

Incredibly pure blackcurrant fruit as you would expect from Brown Brothers, with rich vanilla oak flavours. (12 x 75 cl)

In the glass, the wine is pale straw colour with fresh green tinges, indicating its youth and the freshness that will be encountered when sipped. On the nose it has delightful aromas of melon, honey and marzipan along with with hints of pears and nectarine. On the palate it has it has delightful minerally, savoury characters that entice and delight the tastebuds. Vibrant, racy and fresh. (12 x 75 cl)

One of Australia's most reliable stickies, this is a sweet, vibrant Muscat. (12 x 75 cl)

Brown Brothers excel at these delicious Muscat based dessert wines floral, orange blossom aromas and sweet, balanced grapey flavours. (12 x 37.5 cl)

This medium-bodied red wine is a blend of Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec. It makes attractive drinking as a young wine and a versatile accompaniment to a wide range of foods and cuisine styles. In the glass this wine is a bright dark cherry red colour with aromas of ripe red berries and plum along with hints of delicate oak. It is an easy to drink style of wine with soft red berry characters intermingled with fine tannins, balanced acidity and with oak playing a subtle supporting role (12 x 75 cl)