From Jacquesson....

In Champagne, one of the most northerly of wine growing regions, the concept of a consistent tasting non-vintage cuvée was developed as it can help a producer disguise any problems caused by a difficult growing season; however, this also means that in great years the better qualities in the raw materials that are available to the winemaker have to be sacrificed in order to maintain a House blend.

At Jacquesson, we were not happy with this state of affairs and several years ago we decided to cease making non-vintage cuvées that aimed for the same taste from year to year.

Thanks to the quality of our terroirs, all Premiers and Grands Crus from La Grande Vallée de la Marne and the Côte des Blancs, thanks to our traditionalistic viticulture where we completely eschew the use of herbicides, and thanks to our using only the cuvée from each pressing, but also because we have absolutely no hesitation, in difficult vintages, in rejecting juice which does not meet our standards, our non-vintage wines retain the best of every harvest and we are able to say that they faithfully reflect the characteristics of the base vintage whilst benefiting from the addition of some vins de réserve.

Therefore, our wines have a personality which can be quite different depending on their base vintage, which means they each need to have their own identity. Thus Cuvée No 733, based on the 2005 vintage, succeeds Cuvée No 732 which was based on the 2004 vintage.
 
There were no dramas with the weather in 2005. Winter was cold and dry, spring mild and tranquil, July a bit wetter than optimal so that the heat and humidity experienced between 15 August and 15 September favoured the development of botrytis. Happily, harvest took place in a second half of September that was blessed with sunny weather and the final stages of ripening took place under very good weather conditions. As so often happens, our rigorous viticulture allowed us to perform better than the potential of the vintage might have suggested and we were very satisfied with the quality of our musts which were well balanced with 10.5 degrees potential alcohol and about 7 gm/l acidity.

The wines were vinified, as usual, in large oak casks on their lees, with weekly bâtonnage and with absolutely no filtration. The Chardonnays were very aromatic and balanced with good potential for ageing, the Pinot Noirs were fine and vinous while the Pinot Meuniers were fruity but less complex. The blend is composed of 52% Chardonnay, 24% Pinot Noir and 24% Pinot Meunier and the wines from the 2005 harvest were completed with reserve wines from 2004 (16%) and 2001 (6%). 319,862 bottles, 10,521 magnums and 300 jeroboams were produced. 

The Age Melbourne Magazine August 2008  Tim White
“This puts most other Heathcote reds to shame. Brambly fruit and an earthy gunpowder sniff. Gets cumquat peel with air. Brambly, pippy, berry fruit across the tongue, building firm, grippy tannins. Wholemeal oak characters and a touch of sumac at the back.”

Huon Hooke Wine Good Living March 11th 2008
“The Greenstone shiraz, named after the jasper that be found in the Heathcote vineyard’s ancient Cambrian soil, is a Heathcote shiraz with a difference. It has a spicier aroma than most, moderate alcohol and plenty of acid. That doesn’t mean it tastes acidic, certainly not, but as Antonini says “a wine has to have acidity to go with food. Low-acid wines may be OK as an aperitif but you need acidity with food.” The Greenstone wines are not jammy, they have more red-fruit and spice aromas and are more elegant than some in the region, with moderate alcohols and high natural acidity.”

Max Allen The Weekend Australian 22-23rd March 2008
“The latest release, a 2006 shiraz is a complex, elegant beast, with autumnal, sandalwood perfume and a dense, grainy texture – all classic expressions of that greenstone-rich soil. “

Greenstone 2006 Shiraz (140 KB)

When visiting Brisbane Smashingbottles recommend you stay at Chesters Guest House 

www.chesters.net.au