Mount Mary Pinot Noir - Mount Mary wines from the Yarra Valley, Victoria, are considered to be amongst Australia's finest and rarest wines. Think Penfolds Grange or Henschke Hill of Grace and you're in the right ball park! These very sought after cult wines sell out very quickly each year, in fact the winery only open their doors for two weeks a year to a select bunch of wine enthusiasts!
Mount Mary commands a mythical status among wine collectors, and their two flagship wines, Mount Mary Quintet and Mount Mary Pinot Noir are rarely ever available here in the UK such is the worldwide demand and their limited production (in the Quintet's case just 2,000 cases). Mount Mary wines are generally only available via mail order in Australia but a small parcel of both these wines are now here in the UK.
The Pinot Noir is, well just as its reputation would suggest, an extraordinary rich and sensual wine with fine fruit and considerable length.
Below is courtesy of Mount Mary's own website, and far below is a quote from ‘James Halliday'
"Mount Mary Vineyard is a family owned, single vineyard estate located in the heart of the Yarra Valley which lies in the south-eastern corner of Australia. Established in 1971 by Dr. John and Marli Middleton, Mount Mary was one of the first vineyards planted in the resurgence of the Yarra Valley as a premium grape growing region.
The inspiration for planting vines in this area came from the local history of the Yarra Valley and in particular from the wines being made by the Swiss settlers in the 1850's. These Swiss immigrants had been greatly influenced by the French wine producers and they recognised the climatic parallels the Yarra Valley shared with both Bordeaux and Burgundy." Mount Mary Website
Superbly refined, elegant and intense Cabernets and usually outstanding and long-lived Pinot Noirs fully justify Mount Mary's exalted reputation. The Triolet blend is very good, more recent vintages of Chardonnay likewise. (The Quintet was) First made in 1977 one of few wines in Australia to include in its makeup the five classic grape varieties of Bordeaux: cabernet sauvignon, merlot, cabernet franc, malbec and petit verdot. This wine is Mount Mary¹s finest at its best the ultimate expression of the style, at its least showing that the climate of the Yarra Valley can treat the later-ripening varieties with harshness. - James Halliday
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