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RETIREMENT & LIFESTYLE PLANNING | |
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| ISSUE - 17 - APRIL 2003 | |
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Some of the best fortified wines in the world come from Rutherglen – they are only some of the riches the area has to offer. RITA ERLICH went on the tasting trail.
The landscape looks ancient and reassuring – wide river plains, big old river gums defining the course of the Murray, the horizon rimmed by the Victorian Alps to the east. It is good country, up here in northeast Victoria, close to the New South Wales/Victoria border. It is good mixed farming country, and exceptional wine country.
But they don’t use words like “exceptional” round here.
Rutherglen winemakers don’t boast. They don’t need to. Their wines speak for themselves – and their fortified wines don’t just speak, they sing like Pavarotti.
The loudest are the fortified muscats and tokays. The tough US wine guru Robert Parker tasted the Chambers range and rated them in the high 90s (out of 100), an almost unheard of accolade.
Bill Chambers, something of an elder statesman in the Victorian wine industry (he was chairman of judges of Australia’s biggest wine show for 28 years), smiled and nodded when we congratulated him. “That was nice, wasn’t it?” he said. The low-key pride is typical.
Bill Chambers’ wines are in good company. Campbell’s Rutherglen muscat won the trophy for best fortified wine in the prestigious International Wine Challenge in London last year. Mick and David Morris’s tokays and muscats have consistently won trophies and gold medals at wine shows.
There is a double key to all this success: climate and continuity.
The climate and the soil are kind.
Rutherglen is near the headwaters of the Murray, so water is usually reliable, and then there is the special effect of the winds that come off the Victorian Alps, providing cool nights after hot days during the ripening season. And because the climate has been kind, and the soil generous, families have stayed here for generations.
Wine has been made continuously in Rutherglen – despite the depradations of phylloxera late in the 19th century. Vines were planted in the late 1850s and 1860s by people whose descendants are still making wine. There are a number of families in Rutherglen whose continuity is very similar to that of Barossa families, but what makes Rutherglen remarkable is that the wineries are still largely family-owned. There are the Morrises, the Campbells, the Chambers, the Stantons, the Killeens, all in their fourth, fifth or sixth generation of winemaking.
That continuity, combined with the distinctive climate, has produced a range of fortified wines that are unique in Australia, and – according to English and American wine writers – in the world.
Muscat and tokay (made from the muscadelle grape) depend on blending stocks that go back for generations of vintages. Every year the grapes are picked, the juice fermented, and the fermentation stopped with the addition of grape spirit, after which the wines are put into oak barrels of various sizes.
Time and care do the rest. Over time, the wines mature and intensify.
Some winemakers use a blend of younger and newer vintages; others use a solera system (wine drawn down from older barrels and topped up with younger material). The winegrowers have classified their fortifieds into four distinct styles: Rutherglen, Classic, Grand, Rare.
The Rutherglens are the freshest and lightest; the Rares are immensely concentrated and luscious.
There’s more to it than muscats and tokays, as a visit to the Rutherglen Wine Experience building shows. There’s a whole range of table wines, including the rich dark durif, a grape grown only around here. Rutherglen does festivals exceptionally well, from the 10-day Tastes of Rutherglen in March to the Winery Walkabout in June, the Tour de Muscat (a cycling wine and food tour) in October, and its Legends Weekend in November.
What makes Rutherglen especially rewarding as a touring area is that it is in such good company geographically. It’s part of the north-east valleys network that includes Beechworth, the King Valley, and Milawa – and not only are the wines terrific, but the range of food is outstanding.
Most of Australia’s walnuts are also grown in this area. Head for Myrtleford in May and you’ll find them for sale. There are cherries, asparagus, venison, trout, and beef. At Milawa, about half an hour away, there are berries, mustards, and the great cheeses from the Milawa cheese factory. And most wonderfully, Brown Brothers, another multi-generational winemaking family. Beyond Milawa is Myrtleford, and the Victorian snowfields.
Don’t Miss
Chambers Rosewood Winery, Barkly St, Rutherglen. Open daily A big untidy place, where a man in a work shirt (that’s Bill Chambers) is likely to wave his arm at visitors and tell them to help themselves to whatever they want to taste. There is a wide range of table wines, and a small assortment of locally produced preserves as well. The fortifieds range widely in price, going up to $100 plus for half-bottles of rare tokay. But the Rutherglen tokay is no slouch – probably the only cellar-door flagon wine that has been rated in the high 90’s by Robert Parker.
Campbell’s, Murray Valley Highway, Rutherglen. Open daily This is one of the most popular cellar doors in Victoria, with good reason, because in this handsome building is an outstanding range of wines. Our favourites are the riesling (unusual to find such good riesling in this area), and the shiraz, especially the Bobbie Burns, named for the first vineyard planted by a Campbell. A great place for a light lunch: the cellar door plates feature local produce (smoked trout, cheeses) and are served with a selected glass of something delicious. The legendary Merchant Prince Muscat and Isabella Tokay aren’t available for tasting.
Morris, Mia Mia Rd, Rutherglen. Open daily. The tasting area is fairly simple, and focussed entirely on wine. This is an enduring favourite, thanks to the wonderful Roma Morris (Mick’s wife, David’s mother), whose knowledge of the wines and the area is remarkable. She is often at cellar door, but even when she’s not, take the opportunity to stock up on the durif, a red variety grown only in Rutherglen, the sparkling durif, the fino and amontillado sherries, and, of course, the ports, the tokays, and the muscats.
Jones, Jones Rd, Rutherglen. Open Friday-Sunday & public holidays 10am-5pm The Joneses have been growing grapes in the area for quite a while, but only recently have they started making wine. The winemaker, Mandy Jones, divides her time between Rutherglen and Bordeaux.
The range here is limited and of very high quality. Check out the chardonnay, the sauvignon blanc, the shiraz, and a lovely aperitif fortified called Apero. The Chateau Carsin wines are also available at cellar door.Pfeiffer’s, Distillery Rd, Wahgunyah. Open daily The old port town of Wahgunyah, just across the Murray from Corowa (home of Federation), is actually part of the Rutherglen wine region.
Pfeiffer’s is a real treat, with a big historic building to house its winery and cellar door, and a range of wines that should not be hurried. The gamay is an unusual planting here, and the fino sherry is particularly good. Robyn Pfeiffer is usually at cellar door, and always well informed. Order a picnic hamper in advance for a lunch on the Sunday Creek bridge. That wins the area’s Happy Sigh Award.Brown Brothers, Meadow Creek Rd, Milawa. Open daily It’s big, always busy, and a benchmark in the way cellar doors should be run, with well informed staff and a wide selection to try.
Tastings cover wines of all styles and price ranges. Try less common Italian and Spanish varietals (including barbera, dolcetto and tempranillo), and the Whitlands pinot noir. The sparkling winesare also recommended. There are always some cellar door only wines, with real treasures among them. Follow it up with lunch at the Epicurean Centre.
Also worth a visit:
Stanton & Killeen, Buller, Cofield (and its sibling Drinkmoor) at Rutherlgen, Pizzini at Whitfield.
Where to eat
Tuileries, Drummond St, Rutherglen. Ph (02) 6032 9033
Star Hotel, 105 Main St, Rutherglen. Ph (02) 6032 9625
Pickled Sisters Café, Distillery Rd, Wahgunyah. Ph (02) 6033 2377
King River Café, Snow Rd, Oxley. Ph (03) 5727 3461
The Epicurean Centre, Brown Brothers, Bobinawarrah Rd, Milawa. Ph (03) 5720 5540
Milawa Factory Restaurant and Bakery, Factory Rd, Milawa. Ph (03) 5727 3588How far:
From Sydney: about 6 ½ hours
From Canberra: about 3 ½ hours
From Melbourne: about 3 ½ hours.
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