Vintage Vibes
Vintage is an exciting time to be in Wine Country.
Idyllic summer days readily turn into expansive star-filled nights, and everywhere you look, the vines are flush with bunches now bursting with the promise of things to come. The weather patterns we have experienced throughout summer directly contribute to individual expressions of terroir that each variety will communicate differently, and each winemaker will work to enhance and capture in the bottle.
No two vintages are the same, and overall success comes from an ability to work with this ever-evolving summer season while paying macro-like attention to each vine, bunch, and grape. One part science and one part intuition, the assessment of ripeness and overall fruit quality required throughout vintage is commonly considered a mystic art that only experienced Winemakers hold the secrets to. After countless hours, sleepless nights, and months of hard work and vigorous preparation, it is no surprise that Hunter Winemakers have a deep love of ‘summer styles’ because, let’s be honest - nothing follows hard work quite as well as a vibrant summer varietal.
Traditionally fruit-forward and characteristically bursting with flavour, it is no mistake that summer wines often taste like bottled sunshine. When we think of summer styles, we instinctively reach for the chilled whites such as Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, or Viognier, but the big surprises of the season can often be found in a Rosé, Pinot Noir and, of course, all those summer bubbles.
Food pairings for summer wines, as with the wines themselves, should exhibit bright, light, flavoursome characteristics that work to enhance this sunny season. If only one word could be used to describe the ultimate summer food pairing for a summer varietal, it would undoubtedly be… fresh.
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Mark Davidson
Tamburlaine Organic Wines
