Medium-deep ruby-purple colored, the 2008 Crown Prince Pinot Noir has a ripe, gamey nose over notes of oolong tea, anise and black cherries. Medium bodied with a low to medium level of grainy tannins, it has crisp acid and a long berry-laced finish. Drink it now to 2016.
One of the pioneers of high quality Pinot Noir production in Victoria, Phillip Jones is still leader of the Pinot pack in Australia. But the former research engineer didn't start out wanting to produce Pinot. "Originally I planted Bordeaux varieties because I wanted to make Ducru Beaucaillou in Australia," he laughed. "But I also planted a bit of Pinot." The Pinot Noir he planted in 1979 in Leongatha, Gippsland - a cooler, coastal region 150 kilometers southeast of Melbourne that is still known mainly for dairy and potato farming - turned out to be fantastic. Quite wisely, he ripped all the Cabernet Sauvignon out, planting Pinot Noir and some Chardonnay instead. Today, though about 4% of the property is planted to Chardonnay and there are tiny patches of Gamay, Gewurztraminer and Nebbiolo, the iconic estate known as Bass Phillip is still planted mainly to Pinot Noir (95%) consisting of 8 clones on 5 soil types. Over time, three distinctive sites were isolated to be vinified as single vineyard bottlings. Thus the "Premium" and "Reserve" labels are made from single, adjacent vineyards, both plated in 1979. "Crown Prince" is a newer (15 year old), densely planted vineyard (9000 vines per hectare) giving only about 300 grams of fruit per vine. Jones has recently put in another 1 hectare vineyard about 500 meters from the Premium and Reserve with vines planted to an astonishing 17,000 vines per hectare. 2007 will be the first vintage released off this promising plot. In 1993 he began managing the vineyards organically and in 2002 he went biodynamic, though he is not certified. "Biodynamic treatments bring luminosity to the wines," Jones informed me. "The Pinot vinification is ridiculously simple," he continued. "We just plunge and the only additive is SO 2. The vats are insulated to hit a maximum of 32 degrees." Everything is de-stemmed but not crushed. The Premium and Reserve Pinots are aged in almost 100% new oak - light toast Francois Freres - for 12 to 20 months depending on the vineyard and season. There's no filtration here except for a coarse filtration when necessary on The Crown Prince and whites. Given the nature of natural winemaking, like most followers of this estate I've experienced a few dodgy bottles, but when Bass Philips hits the highs, it truly pushes the boundaries of Australian Pinot Noir greatness. The 2008 and 2009 Bass Phillip Pinot Noir releases should certainly be committed to the cellars of anyone who loves this grape.
Importer: Old Bridge Cellars, Napa, CA; www.oldbridgecellars.com
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