Our sparkling star shines again

Our premium sparkling wine, the 2015 Chardonnay-Pinot Noir, has shone at this year’s Winewise Championship.

This wine has hardly been hiding its light under a bushel – over the last year it has starred in the sparkling classes at Australian wine shows, winning no fewer than five gold medals and taking out the trophy (top gold medal) on two occasions.

But the Winewise Championship is different. It’s intended to be a prestige, best-of-the-best competition – to even enter the Championship wines need to have won a gold medal at selected wine shows. So standards are high and the competition is fierce.

In 2020, the judges considered that the sparkling wine class “was the best, most keenly contested category of the Championship”. Again, our 2015 Chardonnay-Pinot Noir was awarded a gold medal score, the judges’ commenting “The nose is impressively fresh, showing a subtle bready complexity. It’s an intense, long-flavoured wine with a fine mousse and lovely acidity.”

Two other sparkling wines from Orange were also awarded gold medal scores in the Championship, a wonderful hit rate considering the locals were up against leading wines from Tasmania and some of Australia’s top sparkling wine producers.

What’s our secret? Not surprisingly, it’s the climate we experience in the high, cool vineyards of Orange. At Colmar Estate, elevation 980 metres above sea level, our chardonnay and pinot noir grapes show the desired combination sugar, acidity and fine flavours for top quality sparkling wines, especially in the cooler years. And that’s when we make sparkling wines.

Also, at Colmar Estate we exclusively hand-pick, which ensures our wines have the necessary delicacy and finesse. There are no shortcuts in the quest for premium quality sparkling wines.

The 2015 Chardonnay-Pinot Noir was no flash in the pan. We have three more sparkling wines in the pipeline (and they are really, really good).