EAT > Delatite Winery - Smart & Bright

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Delatite Winery in Mansfield Victoria is a little bit off the highway, actually its about 5kms of dirt roads through beautiful agricultural land that takes you to one of the oldest wineries in the region that has just had a very smart update to its cellar door for wine tasting and a great new restaurant.

Launched in June 2021 to coincide with the Queens Birthday weekend (its the start of the Victorian ski season – a time when many people visit the region to ski at Mount Buller) the winery now has a super slick cellar door and a smart restaurant.

Lets start with the Wines

The Upper Goulburn Wine Region snakes down from the NSW border, close to the King Valley region on one side, Beechworth to the north and Rutherglen to the West it has wineries that follow the river some bask on the open plains and but others included in this region are distinctly high country alpine.

Upper Goulburn dazzles with its natural beauty and being one of Victoria’s coldest wine regions, its vineyards produce excellent cool-climate wine styles. Most famed for aromatic whites, there is also an increasing array of quality cool climate reds being grown. Expect to find Riesling, Pinot Gris, Marsanne, Cabernet, Shiraz and some Pinot Noir.

Delatite Wines

Delatite have an extensive range of wines that include several sparkling varieties, aromatic whites, as well as mellow and fairly heavy reds (they even make a few types of Schnapps).

Having tasted the full range there are a few that stand out in my opinion as being very good value wines. If you order a case or more of wine you get the opportunity to join the wine club which provides excellent savings and other benefits.

Delatite Estate Pinot Gris – 2020
This is a perfect summer wine (or spring), it opens with classic stone fruit flavours – think peach, with a long acid finish that balances perfectly on the palate. There is some spice there too a mix of nutmeg and white pepper bring the flavours out very well.

It is a great bargain at $30 (or $22.50 for club members). 14.5% ABV. The wine maker recommends you can cellar for 5 -10 years but I think this excellent early drinking right now.

https://www.delatitewinery.com.au/wine/estate-pinot-gris-2020

There are two Cabernet Merlot releases:
Estate Devils River Cabernet Merlot – 2018
Which is really fabulous value at $38 ($28.50 club price), it is a classic Bordeaux blend – of Cabernet Sauvignon (65%), Merlot (23%), Malbec (10%) and a touch of Cabernet Franc (2%).
There are classic Cabernet mint and rosemary characteristics balanced by the richer plum flavours that come from the Merlot. The Malbec brings some spice and the oak rounds the tannins which are firm but not too grippy.
Almanak 16/20

https://www.delatitewinery.com.au/node/33016

The other is the premium Delatite Reserve ‘Donald’s Block’ Cabernet Merlot – 2016
The Cabernet for this wine is sourced from Donald’s Block, the oldest planted in 1968, which makes up a part of Delatite’s original plantings. This is a rich powerful Cabernet which rewards after a good decant, there are lots of berry fruit upfront with the herbaceous minty flavours. The tannin is not overpowering but lingers on the palate.
$110 ($82.50 member price). Halliday Rating 87/100. Almanak 17/20

The hand picked fruit was crushed and fermented by wild yeast in open vessels with the skins being punched down three times a day to extract maximum flavour, colour and tannin. Once fermentation was complete, the wine was left on its skins for an additional ten days to further extract structural tannins before being pressed and matured in new French Oak barrels for twenty four months. The resulting wine was then blended and bottled without any fining or filtration to ensure the delicate flavours of the variety are preserved. The biodynamically grown block yields fruit with small and intensely flavoured berries that is the integral component of this wine.

https://www.delatitewinery.com.au/wine/reserve-donalds-block-cabernet-merlot-2016