The Legend of Terroir

Regionality is the buzz word in the wine industry at the moment. This partly due to the vast range of Australian wines on the international and national stage and the opportunity to define them in a more specific manner. Some American and European wine press have in the past referred to Australian wine “tasting all the same”. What they are really referring to is the more famous Barossa, McLaren Vale or blended wines from a multiplicity of wine regions as these were the large proportion of wines shipped overseas.

The distance and difference between the regions of Australia allow wine makers to create wines for all palates and showcasing regionality lets other styles shine.  Let me take you through the journey that is the legend of terroir with four questions that spring to mind when people refer to terroir or regionality .–

• What is it?
• Why is it important?
• What interferes with the expression of it? and
• Who is doing it best?

Let’s look at each question and then announce which 3 wineries from the Barossa that express the region spectacularly.  In the following articles I will look at other regions within Australia. What is regionality? It is what makes that wine special, unique, giving it a sense of place.  The end result is when you open the bottle of wine and the aroma rises out of the bottle to transport you to the time and place where it was grown.  Regionality is important, as it is the expression of a particular place that makes it very difficult for others to replicate. 

When Australia burst onto the international scene we produced well constructed, clean wines that were fruit driven compared to many of the French, South American and South African wines that had winemaking faults riddled through them.  Now the rest of the world has cleaned up their act while still maintaining their regional heritage.  It is relevant to turn the attention to what interferes with the expression of regional wine.

Regionality gives the bottle of wine a sense of place and uniqueness and is important for marketing and protecting the individuality of the wine. We now turn our attention to factors that influence the degree that regionality is expressed in the wine. Specifically, the viticultural and winemaking processes will be assessed. Many winemakers would argue that the expression of regional wines comes down to the vineyard and the age of the vines.  The older the vines, the deeper the root system and the greater the vine has to draw intake of soil substrates.  While I agree that the vineyard plays a major role, I would propose that the vineyard management plays an equally vital role.  Generally lower yields, canopy management and whether it is dry grown or irrigated plays a critical role as the greater the irrigation and higher yield the greater dilution of flavours. This is the “regionality” of the wine.  Another major component is how long the grapes spend on the vine.  You get two things if you let the grapes sit on the vine longer; one is an increase in alcohol and the second is a change in flavour.  The profile moves vibrant fruit that tastes like you have picked from the bush or tree to currants, port or baked fruit.  Try leaving a tub of blackberries in the oven for 45 minutes at 180 degrees.  It doesn’t matter where the wine originated from, if they are left sitting on the vine too long these flavours work their way into the wine.

Everything in the vineyard plays a huge part in determining the quality of the regional expression but we will turn our attention to the winemaking process that influences the degree to which it is expressed.  Generally some whites and most red wines are treated with oak, so logically the choice of oak would have an effect on the expression of regionality.  There are two main types of oak barrels, American and French.  American oak imparts sweet flavours like coconut, bourbon and vanilla.  Compared to the French, the American oak is quickly absorbed into the wine which can dominate the aromatics of the wine.  French oak on the other hand slowly imparts flavours of spice, toasted almonds, jasmine or roses.  French oak also transmits a silky tannin structure.  It is a real tight rope for winemakers then they use 100% new American oak, if they want to express the regionality.  That does not mean that the quality of wines that are aged in American oak are lower, rather the quality of the grapes has to be higher to fully articulate their regional background.  The vineyard, vineyard management and oak play the major roles in expressing the sense of place in a wine, but how the wine is fermented provides the icing on the cake.

When it comes to the fermentation of sugar to alcohol the type of yeast plays a vital role in adding flavours and textures. There are options galore when it comes to different types of yeast, so I’ll divide them up into the following groups: wild ferment and super charged strains.  If you have ever brewed beer at home you will know that you can pick different strains of yeast to add particular flavours to your beer.  The strains they use in wine do pretty much the same thing.  Wild yeast is common in the environment especially in close proximity to sugar rich food such as grapes.  They lay on the skins waiting to convert the sugars into alcohol. One could say they are the party animals of the organism world. These ferments are generally longer to start and take longer to finish the process.  Generally the artisan makers are the only ones that are doing this and this method results in a unique commonality running through the whole of the range. 

Who is doing it best?

I have had the pleasure of tasting a  wide variety of wines from the Barossa Valley in South Australia  and have selected  three wineries including, Spinifex, Michael Hall and Shobbrook Wines, that beautifully express the characteristics of the region and sub-regions.  From interviewing all three winemakers on the same day the first thing that stuck out was the passion that all three showed.  It was cascading out of each of them and I must admit that rubbed off on me.  You could say that I had an extra spring in my step.  Peter Schell from Spinifex grew up in New Zealand, which is where he met his wife Magali Gely, and moved to the Barossa to pursue an education in winemaking.  After completing his formal education he and his wife travelled the world completing vintages in Burgundy, Provence, Languedoc, Bordeaux and New Zealand before settling down in the Barossa Valley.  It was here in the Barossa that Peter could work with some of the oldest vines in the world including 100 year old Mataro, Ugni Blanc and Shiraz.  Peter works with family growers who have a deep understanding and passion for producing high quality grapes in a respectful and sustainable manner. Similarly, Michael Hall scoured the world to find growers that respected the land, growing sustainable grapes with varieties that suited the climate.  Michael grew up in England where, in his early 20s he developed a passion for wines.  This was the time in England when wine bars started to become popular.  Michael recalls reading Oz Clarks Wine Guide and being inspired and stimulated to be taken on a journey to taste all of the wines from his readings.  He settled in the Barossa where he now makes diverse wine styles like cool climate Chardonnay from the Adelaide Hills and full bodied Shiraz all within one hours drive from his home.   Throughout his winemaking journey, Michael Hall has worked with many of the icon wineries within Australia and the world, including Domaine Leflaive, Vieux Telegraphe, Giaconda and Cullen. You couldn’t have asked for a more impressive resume.

Unlike Peter and Michael, winemaker Tom Shobbrook from Shobbrook Wines grew up in the Barossa but travelled to Chianti, Italy to do a vintage overseas.  He ended up staying for eight years where he worked as the cellar master for Riecine which meant he was in charge of overseeing the grapes within the vineyard to the time they left the winery in the bottle.  His time in Italy cemented the concept of quality in the vineyard translated to ease of work within the winery to produce the best possible wine in the bottle.  Tom definitely has a strong sense of respect for the vineyard and pushing the viticultural boundaries to express regional wine that are food friendly and exciting.   The common theme that they talked about was a respect for the land and vine where the people that farmed the land created an environment where the ecosystem was allowed to thrive and produce grapes that showed vitality, harmony and balance.   They spoke about how it is an exciting time in the industry as people are just coming to understand the link between sustainable farming, a connection to land and unique quality wines.  When they spoke about where they saw the wine industry in five years time both Peter and Michael said that he thought the focus would be on high quality vineyards and an increase in the perception of high quality Australian wines worldwide.  Tom thought that education is important where open minded people could discuss viticultural practises and the impact on the quality of grape production.  In the end you can see that these three winemakers are experimenting with viticultural practises to forge ahead with producing quality regional wines.