Ravensworth 'The long way around' Porongurup Pinot Noir 2020

'From over 5000km they came - across both the Nullabor and Bass Strait - five trucks, one train and a boat carrying eight varieties, from five regions to finally reach home, Murrumbateman. You might say the long way around.

We knew early our fruit was toast from bushfires. Many friends from far away offered us fruit and processing space so we scratched together an eclectic mix of esoterica.

Point to Porongurup on a map, I dare you. Sure, because of the suffix ‘up’, it’s probably not from eastern suburbs of Sydney. So we are in WA where it apparently is from the Noongar people as a place with water (that’s a quick google search so don’t quote me) High up in the remoteness of this region sits Castle Rock, not the Stephen King mini-series, but an actual rock and winery, where this wine was processed.

Pinot Noir comes in many guises, and every producer worth their salt has dreamed of cracking the code of this difficult variety. Like many, what happens in the vineyard and production is of utmost importance but where it comes form probably stamps the wine with a bigger target than anything we can do to it. Early ripening pushes it to our coolest areas, climate change making these even harder to find so this cold, desolate rock seems as good a place as any to begin our Pinot journey.

Keeping things simple, the wine was process onto bunches and hand plunged for a couple of weeks. Once pressed and windswept from its track across the country to our little cellar, this wine just shone.

Tasting Notes
Delicate, sure, a little shy even, but a fantastic structure and, given time, these spicy, almost cold-climate shiraz, herbs and red currant aromas start to shine. Needs a big glass and some breathing. Surprised me more than any wine we made from these far flung, and literally, isolated places this year.'

- Ravensworth