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Picardy is one of Australia’s leading premium boutique wine producers, established in 1993 in the Pemberton region of Western Australia. The winery is owned and operated by Bill, Sandra, Dan and Jodie Pannell. Bill and Sandra were pioneers of the Margaret River region, establishing Moss Wood vineyard and winery in 1969. Moss Wood went on to be a major driving force in establishing Margaret River as one of Australia’s important growing regions. Bill was also a shareholder of Domaine de la Pousse d’Or in Volnay, where he lived for 4 years learning about the different clones of Burgundy and figuring out which ones would be successful in Western Australia. Once back in Pemberton, he was visited by Guillaume Tardy, from Domaine Jean Tardy who helped set up the vineyards while teaching Bill and Dan along the way.
All wines bearing the Picardy label are entirely from their single vineyard property in Pemberton. This region provides a tranquil and pristine backdrop to the winery. At every opportunity Picardy practices environmentally friendly methods, from letting guinea fowls run free through the vineyards to canopy management. Picardy wines are all dry grown, hand-picked and 100% estate fruit. This is truly a family run winery, with 3 generations of the Pannell family living on the property.
THE PEMBERTON REGION
Pemberton's loamy, gravel soils and cool climate will prove it to be one of the best regions in Australia for the growing of pinot noir and chardonnay. The region is also well suited to the production of refined Bordeaux style wines.
Pemberton is one of Australia's newer wine regions, located in the South West of Western Australia. The first grapes were planted in 1977, with commercial plantings expanding throughout the 1980s.
Pemberton is an excellent region for viticulture because of its combination of southern latitude and high altitude, which create a relatively cool climate. This provides the grapes with a sustained ripening period. Pemberton's loamy, gravel soils and cool climate make it one of the best regions in Australia for the growing of pinot noir and chardonnay.
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| Chardonnay |
The Chardonnay vines are close-planted to promote competition between vines and maximize root depth. They are also trained low so they benefit from heat radiating from the gravely soils in the evenings. This extends the duration of the growing and ripening time per day. The vineyard is leaf-plucked, crop-thinned, picked and pruned
by hand.
Whilst in Burgundy in the 1980s, the Pannell Family researched literally hundreds of vine clones from the best Domaines in the region. The outcome of their research was a small selection of clones, which they believed to be suitable for their new vineyard. These clones were chosen based on the quality of fruit/wine produced from them, rather than yield. Chardonnay clones selected were 76, 95, 96 and 277.
The Chardonnay is produced in a delicate, refined style in keeping with the great wines of Burgundy. It is barrel fermented and lees aged in French oak for ten months. This wine has a refined, complex nose showing floral and flinty aromas. The wine is built with excellent structure around luscious fruit and tight, tangy acid. Fruit flavors are complex and show lime with hints of mineral, hazelnut, pear and honey.
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| Pinot Noir |
The Pinot Noir vines yield a maximum of 7 ton/ha - excess fruit being crop-thinned by hand at veraison. To achieve low yields the vineyard is non-irrigated and cane pruned.
Picking time for the Pinot Noir is usually around early March. The fruit is ripened to around 13º Be, but fruit flavor ultimately determines picking dates. The fruit is hand picked and transported to the winery on the Picardy Estate.
In the winery 75-85% of the fruit is de-stemmed, with the remainder left as whole bunches. The must is cold macerated (pre-fermentation) for 1-4 days. The fermentation is carried out at between 28-35ºC over 12-16 days - hand plunged three times per day. Following airbag-pressing, the different ferments are then blended to
allow maximum integration. The wine is settled and pumped into new to 4 year old French oak barriques, where it matures for 12 months. While in oak the wine goes through MLF and each barrel is checked and topped up fortnightly. After its time in oak the wine is given a light filtration on its way to bottle.
Enticing cedar, strawberry and mulberry aromas with a hint of new leather and toasted oak. The palate is refined with red currant, cherry, mushroom nuances and a telltale lingering, savory finish. This wine is silky smooth while the structure is tight with nicely balanced tannins.
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