THE VINEYARD
The original Hurley Farm was established by Irish settlers (William and Johanna Hurley) in the 1860’s, but it is the current owners Tricia Byrnes and Kevin Bell who first planted vines at the Balnarring property on the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria in 1998. Their the sole intention was to establish single vineyard pinot noirs that spoke to the site aspect and the soil (or terroir) and to the pinot vine clone.
The established three separate vineyards with slightly different aspects that are planted with different clones of pinot noir. The Lodestone comprises 1.4 ha with a northerly aspect facing direct sun it often ripens ahead of the other vineyards. According to Kevin Bell, “it has more rock and stones in the soil than Hommage and Garamond. Ripeness is never a problem here. It has the modern Dijon clones 114, 115 and 777, and the wonderful MV6″. The vineyard was 90% planted in 1999 (with clones 114, 115 and MV6). The final 10% planted in 2004 with the pinot clone 777.
THE WINE
Delicate in the glass, the first thing you identify is the pale beauty of the wine, the nose is intense and brings powerful sweet black cherries and something a little earthier, slightly mushroomy or a hint of sage. On the palate there are layers of complexity that follow from the front to the back with a rich mouthfeel, there is oak but it is delicate and in excellent balance. The wine has great length and the finish retains its structure with just enough acid balanced with nice soft tannins. Such an elegant wine.
The Lodestone name is a reference to the abundance of Magnetite found in the soil on the Hurley property and particularly the Lodestone plot.
The fruit was harvested by hand on 18 March 2020, fermented under the action of indigenous yeasts, basket pressed on 10 April 2020 and, after twenty months in barrel (one quarter new) and bottled on 2nd of November 2021.
“Staying true to the site, Kevin Bell needed to bring his fruit in at a higher baumé – anything less would have meant unripe flavours. However, the wine has a generosity and is certainly not warm, despite 14.6% alcohol. A wonderful wine, more suited to short-term drinking. It’s imbued with plenty of tannin, moulded over sweet fruit,with some rhubarb and blood orange flavours and a touch of ferrous. Full bodied, deep and earthy. Don’t wait. Ready now.”
Jane Faulkner (Halliday Wine Companion)
THE WINE MAKER
Kevin Bell was nominated as a finalist in the Gourmet Wine Magazine Wine Maker of the Year Awards for 2020, but he had a massive career before wine as a Lawyer (QC), Justice of the Supreme Court, a Local Councillor and a Professor of Law. Learning from Nat White (Main Ridge Wines) and Phillip Jones (Bass Phillip) he also completed a Bachelor of Applied Wine Science from Charles Stuart University. Bell continued to learn traditional Burgundian techniques with Jean-Marie Fourrier in Gerry Chambertin many of which are now in operation at Hurley.
REVIEWS & AWARDS
- 95/100 – Jane Faulkner – James Halliday’s Wine Companion
- 91/100 – Huon Hooke – The Real Review
- 93/100 – Mike Bennie – The Wine Front
- 96/100 – Crispin Blackall – Almanak
| SIGHT (25) | NOSE (25) | PALATE (25) | FINISH (25) | ||||
| Colour (10) | 9 | Aroma (10) | 9 | Complexity (10) | 10 | Aftertaste (10) | 9 |
| Viscosity (5) | 5 | Faults (5) | 5 | Concentration (5) | 5 | Balance (5) | 5 |
| Brilliance (5) | 5 | True 2 Variety (5) | 5 | Fruit (5) | 5 | Tannin/Phenolics (5) | 5 |
| Depth (5) | 5 | Intensity (5) | 5 | Length (5) | 5 | Acid (5) | 5 |
| Total | 24 | 22 | 21 | 22 | |||
| Rating | 97 | ||||||
Grape | Pinot Noir
ABV | 13.1%
Price | $69
LINKS
https://www.hurleyvineyard.com.au/hurley-cellar-door