Dominique Portet
— Portfolio —
The Brut Rosé is made exclusively from Upper Yarra Valley fruit, a blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The grapes were handpicked, gently pressed, and fermented before undergoing secondary fermentation in the bottle. The wine was then aged for two years on lees, disgorged, and given a light dosage of 5 to 6 grams prior to release. This NV primarily comes from the 2020 vintage and is composed of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay.
“A gorgeous salmon pink colour with a nose showing rose petals, lemon pith, shortbread, and strawberries. An energetic palate with brioche notes and vibrant red fruits. Lovely aromatics with a clean, fresh, and zesty palate.” – Notes by Ben Portet
“Has a straw-pink hue with good mousse. The hand-picked blend is 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay, with 90% from the 2020 vintage and 10% reserve wines dating back to 2012. It spent 24 months on yeast lees and was given a light dosage of 5g/L. It has focus and intensity, bright fruit, and terrific length. Arguably the best value of the Australian contingent.” – 95 pts – Wine Companion
VINTAGE BRUT NATURE 2021
Bottle Shot
To accompany the much-lauded Brut Rosé, Dominique Portet has created a limited-release vintage ‘white’ sparkling in the form of this new Brut Nature. Sourced exclusively from fruit from their leased vineyard near Gladysdale in the Upper Yarra, a region that has been synonymous with premium sparkling production dating back to early plantings in the 80s and 90s, at an elevation of 220 to 250 metres.
The blend is 45% Pinot Noir and 55% Chardonnay, with 5 to 10% of the overall base wine coming from reserve wines consisting of 8 to 10 years of back vintages to add complexity. The wine is left on lees for 36 months with absolutely zero dosage, hence Brut Nature.
Ben Portet comments that, due to the low cropping from this vineyard, the fruit already has a lot of richness. It’s a similar story in Champagne, where producers are using less dosage due to warmer vintages and riper fruit.
FONTAINE ROSE 2024
Bottle Shot
Fontaine Rosé, the staple of the Portet’s huge impact on the industry is a beautiful blend of 55% Merlot, 35% Cabernet and 10% Shiraz. All the fruit is hand picked before gently crushing and pressing. It’s then fermented into stainless steel tanks for freshness and lees are then stirred regularly to give the wine it’s soft texture and bright mouthfeel. Mild conditions during ripening allowed the grapes gradually to develop lovely flavour while retaining vital natural acidity. The fruit for this rosé comes from various cool sites from throughout the Yarra Valley. A great balance of cooler nights helped bring it all together and retain lovely acid.
SINGLE VINEYARD CHARDONNAY 2023
Bottle Shot
The fruit from their mature estate vineyard in Gladysdale is accentuated by wild ferments for complexity and battonage—lees stirring—for a creamy mouthfeel and added depth. Ten percent goes through Malolactic fermentation to soften the wine and add further mouthfeel. Twenty-five percent is matured in a mix of new tight-grained French oak 228-litre barrels and 500-litre puncheons for spice and extra texture.
“From a high-elevation vineyard in Gladysdale. Mainly barrel fermented in 500L puncheons (20% new), 15% mlf. A bright green gold. Pristine with its aromas of white peach, gentle spice and just a soupçon of vanillin from the well-handled oak. Tightly wound but fleshes out nicely through the mid-palate before finishing flinty and long. Will look even better in a few months.” – 96 pts – Wine Companion
SINGLE VINEYARD PINOT NOIR 2023
Bottle Shot
The Gladysdale subregion is home to some of the most iconic Pinot Noir vineyards of the Yarra Valley. Situated at an altitude of 250m in the far eastern quadrant of the valley, the mature (25+ years) plantings of low-yielding MV6 clones thrive in these cooler growing conditions and red soils.
The harsh growing conditions at the start brought yields 30% lower than last year with small berries and bunches. As the season improved, the warm, dry weather let the smaller berries ripen perfectly and pack a big punch of fragrant, bright red fruit characters.
The grapes were hand-harvested and chilled overnight to ensure brightness and purity. Ten per cent were left as whole bunches to add perfume and freshness. They were crushed and kept on skins for two weeks before being transferred into fine French oak barrels (20% new) with very tight grain to add structure. After maturing for ten months in barrel, the wine was bottled and aged in the cellar until now.
“A very bright crimson. A bit darker-fruited than the ’22 but with equally good purity and complexity. Subtle florals and spice too. Even better on the plush yet beautifully balanced and structured palate. The tannins are chalky and fine. It’s a good combination and bodes well for the future. It might be a relatively new variety for the Portets, but they are kicking goals with every new pinot noir release.” – 96 pts – Wine Companion
FONTAINE CABERNETS 2023
Bottle Shot
39% Merlot, 34% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Malbec, 2% Cabernet Franc. Everything is hand picked and sorted by mechanical sorting line, then fermented at a relatively cool temperature to accentuate the aromatics and brightness. The wine spent 20 days on skins, before being moved to French oak barrels, of which 20% are new and then aged for 14 months prior to bottling.
A mild spring with high rainfall set the scene for the cool growing season. Summer began dry and remained below average temperature throughout – in the end the season brought everything together albeit much later than the previous year and gave us a wine that resulted in a really classic Yarra style of Bordeaux blends – restrained and fruit driven with fine tannins. We strive for drinkability through elegance, and the season came through to deliver exactly that.
ESTATE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2018
Bottle Shot
This wine has come so far in the last few years. Dominique’s more structured Bordelais style has been softened by now head winemaker Ben Portet. In addition the family bought the world’s most respected sorting machines so after hand picking the Cabernet Sauvignon only the best and healthiest grapes make the wine which has taken this wine to new heights of quality. The grapes came from two Yarra Valley sites, both of which are home to mature vines (20+ years) on soils of sandstone over clay. The first, in Coldstream, is the cooler of the two and gives aromas in the red-fruit spectrum. The second site is at Steels Creek on a warm, steep west-facing slope. Aged for 14 months in French oak (40% new).
SINGLE VINEYARD CABERNET MALBEC 2021
Bottle Shot
A new entry to the single vineyard range is the excellent Cabernet/Malbec. From 25 year old vines in Coldstream which is a heavy sandstone clay make up, the vineyard has fantastic Cabernet and Malbec fruit for this elegant structural combination. Warm years don’t worry Cabernet or Malbec. In fact both can thrive in warmer vintages. Interestingly the blend is only made up of 5% Malbec, which is surprising as the characters of Malbec in the blend do shine through. The Cabernet is classic, elegant with great fruit weight. It sees 20 days on skins with 14 months on oak with 30% of that oak being new French. Pure fruited with an abundance of red fruit notes and bramble characters, there is lovely minerality as well lining the refreshing acidity. Silky tannins make this a generous and delicious wine one and the same.