Product Information:
Too bright to be missed. Stargazer’s Tupelo continues to be loved by trade and consumer alike. So much so, much of the volume is allocated on release. The great news is that in 2024 the younger plantings on Samantha’s Tea Tree vineyard have started to mature enough that a small parcel was included this year in the final blend, offering us a little more wine to go around. The blend of the 2024 is 42% Pinot Gris, 30% Riesling, 21% Gewürztraminer & 7% Pinot Blanc.
This unusual blend mirrors the famous Alsatian ‘Gentil’ styles marrying the body and texture of Pinot Gris, exuberance of the Pinot Blanc with the spicy aromatics of Gewürztraminer and finishing with the finesse and acid structure of Riesling. Pale yellow in colour, the nose shows plenty of exotic notes including honeysuckle, orange blossom and dried orange skin. Textural and generous on the palate with a roundness and mouthcoating quality, pear tarte tatin and lemon curd frame the long finish.
The name Tupelo was inspired by the Tupelo black gum, of which its honey is highly sought after for its unique characteristic of having the perfect balance of sugars that it doesn’t crystallise. Samantha’s passion for white blends and the drive to find the perfect balance of sugar, acid and texture with her wines makes the naming of this wine perfect. Plus it’s the name of a Van Morrison song ‘Tupelo Honey’ and the place where Elvis was born. Given the praise this wine has received in recent vintages I’d say it’s keeping up with its heady namesake.
Samantha highlights how delicious Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer taste straight off the vine in Coal River Valley, so much flavour in the skins. All of the component varietals are sourced from the Coal River Valley from differing sub regions, Richmond, Tea Tree and Campania. All the grapes are hand picked, destemmed. Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc & Riesling are left on skins for approximately 8 hours then pressed off to seasoned oak for wild ferment. Gewurztraminer is left a little longer on skins pre-ferment for 2 days. All varietals are left on lees post ferment for 2 months, with lees stirring every two weeks. Small parcel of Riesling is fermented in ceramic egg. Wine is fined and filtered due to the 3.7 grams of RS purposely left in the wine.
Maker:
Stargazer pays tribute to Abel Tasman, who as an explorer and navigator, must have spent a fair amount of time gazing towards the heavens. A Dutchman under the employ of the United East India Company, Abel Tasman was the first European to sight Tasmania (on 24 November 1642) and then the South Island of New Zealand, nineteen days later on 13 December. He is a natural link for winemaker Samantha Connew, having been born and bred a South Islander, and now having fallen in love with another island, Tasmania.
For Samantha Connew, the opportunity to work with pristine fruit to craft the wines she is passionate about in an environment of extraordinary beauty is really all she wanted to do as a winemaker. Sam recollects her high school Classics teacher, a Scotsman who at one point had been in the Merchant Navy, always said that when visiting museums, art galleries, and churches we should remember to look up as the best treasures can be above us.
Talented winemaker and wine judge Samantha Connew took over the property in 2016 and expanded the vineyard to include additional vines: more pinot noir, some chardonnay and more riesling along with smaller quantities of gamay, pinot blanc, pinot gris and gewurztraminer.
Vineyard:
This is the first year that Tupelo has included a small portion of fruit from the 2021 plantings of Gris, Pinot Blanc, Riesling and Gewurztraminer at their Palisander vineyard in the Coal River Valley sub-region of Tea Tree. The remaining fruit is from other small holdings in the Coal River Valley, the Gewurztraminer from a vineyard just outside of Richmond, the Pinot Gris also from just outside Richmond, and a little bit of Riesling from Campania.
Stargazer vineyards are located in the Tea Tree subregion at the northern end of the Coal River Valley, the original 1ha vineyard on Back Tea Tree Road was planted by Norm and Jan Gangell in 2004. Pretty much half and half riesling and pinot noir, the property (eleven hectares in total) is also home to an olive grove. Samantha took over in 2016 and in late 2017 expanded the vineyard to include an additional two hectares of vines: more pinot noir (four clones), some chardonnay (another four clones) and more riesling. Stage two of the expansion was planted in October 2021: more pinot noir (two clones), gamay, pinot blanc, riesling, pinot gris and gewurztraminer.
Whilst still very new to the whole grape grower caper, Samantha and her new vineyard manager Guy Young are fervent believers in sustainable farming, biodiversity and regenerative agriculture. As part of this approach, they use sheep in the vineyard during winter for weed control, chickens free range throughout the year and scratch around for bugs, bees contribute their pollination magic (and honey) and since 2020 we have planted over 1000 native species on the property.
Nose - Exotic Florals, Orange Blossom, Orange Peel
Pale yellow in colour, the nose shows plenty of exotic notes: honeysuckle, orange blossom and dried orange skin.
Palate - Mouthcoating, Pear Tart Tatin, Lemon Curd
Textural and generous on the palate with a roundness and mouthcoating quality, pear tarte tatin and lemon curd.
Finish - Lengthy Finish, Almond Cream, Salinity
Lemon curd frames the long finish, creamy texture. Tannin, salinity, and acid keep it fresh.
The Finer Details
Style - White Wine
Varietal - 42% Pinot Gris, 30% Riesling, 21% Gewurztraminer, 7% Pinot Blanc
Country - Australia
Region - Coal River Valley, Tasmania
Vintage - 2024
Bottle Size - 750ml
ABV - 13%
Closure - Screw Cap
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