Apogee Deluxe 2017
- 94
- $65
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The superb quality of sparkling wines from Tasmania is now one of the worst kept secrets in the world of wine. Andrew Pirie knows Tasmania better than anyone, having sought the finest terroirs on the Island since the early 1970s. He was the man behind the legendary Piper’s Brook wines. With Apogee, he is focusing on the best of the best and his sparklers are world class (and great value in comparison to what you need to pay for Champagne of similar quality, though of course the wine styles are different). The latest is a blend of 61% Pinot Noir, which certainly shows, and 39% Chardonnay. The grapes are whole bunch pressed, undergo oxidative handling and then the wine spends 47 months on lees. The disgorging date is shown on the bottle, a welcome innovation we are seeing more frequently.
Deep gold/bronze in colour, the nose offers hazelnuts, florals, quince, gentle red fruits, freshly baked breads, spices and stonefruit notes. This is bright, with good length and some biting citric acidity with a creamy texture. A lovely sparkler.
Ken was born and bred in Brisbane, Queensland. He had a non-trendy, perfectly happy childhood, in a family convinced alcohol meant instant condemnation to Hades. But a break fishing on the Great Barrier Reef, and some good wine, started a serious obsession that eventually took over. It did not stop Ken being chastised later for drinking Pol champagne, disgusted he’d drink anything made by a Cambodian dictator. Now, Ken mostly writes on wine, champagne and spirits for various newspapers, magazines and books, but is perhaps best known for his work in The Courier Mail. He also has a little sideline writing on cigars, fishing, travel and food. When not writing, fly-fishing for trout in NZ or bonefish on the flats of Cuba, travelling or smoking cigars, he is no doubt following a variety of sporting teams – the occasionally glorious Queensland Reds rugby, the dysfunctional Washington Redskins, the dodgy Arsenal and especially revels in the world restored to its proper axis with the return of the Ashes to their rightful home.
