Tiers Vineyard 2022

Cette cuvée provient exclusivement du Tiers Vineyard, au cœur de la Piccadilly Valley, dans les Adelaide Hills d’Australie-Méridionale. Planté sur les pentes fraîches, abritées et orientées nord-est de la vallée, ce vignoble d’altitude bénéficie de l’influence rafraîchissante de l’océan Austral. Ses vieilles vignes de Chardonnay s’enracinent dans des sols d’argile limoneuse rouge-brun issus d’anciennes roches du complexe de Barossa, apportant tension et expression minérale au vin.

Les raisins sont vendangés à la main, puis refroidis en cagettes à 2 °C avant un pressurage doux en grappes entières par pressoir pneumatique. Le moût est ensuite transféré par gravité en barriques françaises, dont un tiers neuves, pour une fermentation lente de deux mois dans les fraîches conditions automnales. Le vin séjourne ensuite sur lies totales en fûts jusqu’en décembre, avant soutirage et mise en bouteille en janvier.

Ce vin dévoile des notes de nectarine mûre, de pêche blanche, de pamplemousse, de citron, de citron vert, de pomme fraîche, de fumée de silex, de noix de cajou grillée, de nougat, de vanille, de biscuit brioché et d’épices douces. La bouche conjugue une texture ample et crémeuse à une trame acidulée très vive ; une fine amertume de zeste de pamplemousse étire la finale, longue, saline et crayeuse.

Australia began making wine more than two centuries ago. The result is a country rich in old vines, multi-generational winemaking families and a deep-rooted knowledge of and respect for craftsmanship. Add to that a thirst for exploration and innovation, a fearless attitude and a varied portfolio of 65 wine regions across many climates, and you have the makings of an extraordinary wine country like few others. Australia burst onto export markets in the 1980s and has since offered the whole world vibrant, fruity wines of exceptional value. Until the late 1990s and early 2000s, the story of Australian wine was dominated by over-concentrated examples of Shiraz, Grenache and red blends. Between these two extremes lies the diversity of Australia's high-quality and regional wines, which has always existed. Australian viticulture is mainly concentrated along the southern ocean fringe, where conditions are cooler. There are four main wine regions, located around the major cities: Western Australia around Perth, South Australia around Adelaide, Victoria around Melbourne and New South Wales around Sydney. The country is one of the world's largest wine producers and was the 4th largest exporter in the world in 2011. This recent development has made Australia one of the most prominent countries today for the quality of its wines. You can taste Australian wines all over the country. Each Australian region has its own grape varieties. Australian wines are defined by their grape variety, unlike French wines, which are defined by their terroir.