Warramunda Estate Yarra Valley Viognier 2019

Warramunda has looked to the white grapes of the Rhone Valley before, in particular, an attractive, layered marsanne. Here, it does an impressive wine, picked earlier than many viogniers on the market and, hence, without the usual fuller bodied middle palate. Rather, what drinkers will see is a firm, fine textured and complex young viognier that highlights the grape’s inherent beauty. The addition of wild yeast barrel fermentation and 12 months in seasoned oak provides that textural component drinkers expect.

It remains a different expression to the norm, the acidity is relatively high, the palate is waxy and lightly textural, and the fruit revolves around apple, lemon and white peach with baked pastry notes. It remains steadfastly cool climate in style.

Jeni Port

Wine critic at Winepilot

Jeni Port is one of Australia’s top wine communicators. Based in Melbourne, Jeni created the first wine column in the (then) Sun News-Pictorial before moving over to The Age and becoming that paper’s longest-serving wine writer. Over the years she has written for most Australian wine magazines and these days calls WinePilot home. She is also a Tasting Panel member on the Halliday Wine Companion. She was named Wine Communicator of the Year and Legend of the Melbourne Food and Wine Festival in 2014 and in 2018 Legend of the Vine. She is a founding board member of Australian Women In Wine and is the co-deputy chair of Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards and China’s Wine List of the Year Awards.

Wine writer and critic