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Wineries
and Wines

Curlewis

Location: Geelong
James Halliday Rating: 4 ½ stars

Curlewis is a small wine growing district on the Bellarine Peninsula, near Geelong, one hour's drive south-west of Melbourne, Australia. It was named after Septimus Lord Curlewis, its first settler in 1840.

Rainer Breit and Wendy Oliver, professionals in engineering and management education, bought the tiny 4 acre pinot noir plot in 1997 and proceeded to put in a Burgundian winery.

The now 20 year old vines produce the core of the quality and concentration that is expected from Curlewis wines. The proximity to the southern ocean ensures cool ripening and highly varietal pinot noir flavours. The vineyard is on black cracking clay over limestone, a combination that produces deep coloured yet elegant wines. Other low yielding pinot noir, chardonnay, pinot gris and shiraz grapes are sourced from local vineyards to complete the product range.

WINE-MAKING PHILOSOPHY

Curlewis holds the belief in learning from the thousand years of European experience with wine and food as a combination, not in isolation as is all too common in the New World of wine.

Curlewis absorbs the wine-making styles of Burgundy and Rhone in particular but set out to take advantage of the more consistent climate and some of the better new techniques to create wines of greater concentration and flavour ripeness yet still with the full length of palate that goes with ultra premium wines the world over.

Success for Rainer and Wendy, is a Grand Cru Burgundy drinker who buys Curlewis wine because in their opinion, it reaches that quality at a tenth of the price.

COMPETITION RESULTS

November 2002:
Curlewis Reserve Pinot 2001 came third out of 72 Victorian pinots in the prestigious Concours des Vins du Victoria.

2000 Curlewis Pinot Noir came equal 3rd out of 49 Victorian pinots in the same competition in November 2001.

REVIEWS

Curlewis, according to James Halliday, this year has hit the jackpot! In only our third vintage he has upgraded us to the highest rank - 5 star status defining us as an "outstanding winery regularly producing exemplary wines."

James Halliday Wine Companion:

2002 Curlewis Reserve Pinot Noir: 96 points
2001 Curlewis Pinot Noir : 94 points 500 cases made.
2001 Curlewis Reserve Pinot Noir: 96 points 175 cases made.
2000 Curlewis Shiraz: 93 points
2000 Curlewis Pinot Noir: 92 points

How good is the Reserve Pinot Noir?

In the last three years a total of only 9 pinots were rated 96. Only two made it to 97. Curlewis Reserve Pinot's 96 rating made it equal second best in a field of approximately 800 Australian pinots.

Also just released:

Robin Bradley's Australian Wine Vintages twenty first edition 2004

Robin requires three vintages of a wine before he reviews it. With the third vintage of pinots released this year Curlewis submitted samples of the Pinot Noir and the Reserve Pinot Noir.

So where does he put the Reserve?

Straight in amongst 'the continent's best' at 5 stars.

And in his preface to the 21st edition he mentions only one Australian wine:

"No new Gold Star wines have emerged for this edition, although the Reserve Pinot Noir of the Curlewis Winery - only three vintages to date - looks certain to receive this ultimate accolade in the near future. A sublime Pinot! I look forward to a few subsequent vintages. Dare I say - it is very French."

By the way, the Curlewis Pinot received a commendable 4 stars.

With a reported 15,000 copies going to the US alone, might Curlewis be hearing from the great Robert Parker Junior next?

2000 Curlewis Shiraz

Shiraz grapes from the Bellarine, Bannockburn and Pollocksford areas were blended with 10% cabernet franc and 5% merlot to give a linear palate structure similar to the great wines of northern Rhone. The nose is complex and meaty followed by luscious cool climate fruit, a strong mid palate and firm yet forgiving tannins on the back. Some would say it is drinking best now but we believe there is good longevity in this great food wine.

'Medium red-purple; a woodsy, savoury, spicy bouquet with the emphasis away from primary fruit, but the palate powers forward with abundant black plum and spicy fruit. Fine tannins and a long finish, grown on three vineyards, which are all low yielding.
93pts pts James Halliday Wine Companion 2003

2002 Curlewis Pinot Noir

This Pinot Noir has become a benchmark pinot in Australia. Grapes yielding an average of 1.5 tonnes per acre were blended from the estate and Bannockburn region to give high fruit concentration on the front to middle palate and ripe tannins and tangy acid on the back. A beautifully balanced wine. Slightly more fruit than the 2000 and less funky than the 2001 but still showing the same complexity and character. Our best one so far.

2002 Curlewis Reserve Pinot Noir

Almost embarassing to say this one is our best yet as we have been saying the same every year since 1998. But if you can't keep on improving, maybe you shouldn't be in the business. Nevertheless 2002 was an extraordinary year.

Less funky than 2001, less acid than 2000 but a great "drink soon or cellar long" proposition. More in the style of the new wave of high end Burgundies which take some time to develop those feral characters. Represented Australia in James Halliday's Tri Nations Taste-off.

“Very complex aromas and flavours; an intense mix of plum, black cherry and forest; long, lingering finish; excellent acidity.”
- 96 pts James Halliday Wine Companion 2003 ed.

“It's pretty obvious by now that Winefront Monthly is a big fan of this winery and if ever evidence was required as to why, this is it. It's a great wine - it's a display of everything that its winemaker Rainer Breit says new world pinot should be like. Intrinsically complex, high in acid, lashed with fruit power and tempered by trips of volatility, it lingers well and promises to age beautifully. This is an Australian pinot noir for Burgundy lovers - and for once, that isn't lip service.”
- 95 pts Campbell Mattinson, Winefront Monthly: May 2004

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