Daosa Natural Reserve NV (6 Bottles)

Daosa Natural Reserve NV (6 Bottles) 

Daosa Natural Reserve NV hails from Piccadilly Valley vineyards. This wine is a Chardonnay and Pinot Noir blend, produced following the principles of Method Classic. 

Planted by Charles “Chilly” Hargrave in 1987, the Summertown Vineyard (Piccadilly Valley) is one of the oldest vineyards in the Adelaide Hills. It is planted with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir and the fruit has always been used for sparkling wine – and some years for top end table Chardonnay. The Bizot vineyard is situated in the heart of Piccadilly Valley, and is one of the highest vineyards in the valley at 500m altitude. The soil is red clay and sandy loams over a 70 million-year-old shale rock formation. The Chardonnay is planted on a north-north east facing slope. The terroir in the higher, cooler slopes of the Piccadilly Valley makes it ideal for Sparkling wine produced using Méthode Traditionnelle.

DAOSA is made following the Méthode Traditionnelle used in the Champagne region of France. Perfectly ripe Pinot Noir fruit for sparkling was hand harvested in March 2022. The fruit was whole bunch pressed, retaining only 600L per tonne of fruit pressed. This gave very fresh acidity, clean juice and good primary fruit characters prior to fermentation. The juice was fermented cool in stainless-steel tank. Once primary fermentation was complete, the wine went through malolactic fermentation in tank. Before tirage, the wine was blended (assemblage) with some Réserve Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier (15% Réserve wines in the final blend) and aged in large old foudres without sulphur. The wine was then "tiraged" with the addition of yeast and sugar prior to bottling, to induce secondary fermentation in bottle. The resultant sparkling wine was aged on lees before disgorging.

The wine shows classic Pinot Noir characters with subtle strawberry notes on the middle palate, tempered by a fine bead and a beautiful complexity and length from the Réserve wines. A classic example of Australian sparkling wine, made in the traditional method.

Fruit-driven aromas of green apples, Asian pears, chalk and lemon peel. The palate is light- to medium-bodied with vibrant acidity, a fine mousse and notes of lime curd, grapefruit rind and shortbread. Fresh and vibrant, with 6 g/L of dosage. 57% pinot noir, 35% chardonnay and 8% pinot meuniere. Drink or hold. James Suckling, 94 Points.

The Finer Details
Style - Sparkling Wine
Varietal - Pinot Noir, Chardonnay
Country - Australia
Region - Piccadilly Valley, South Australia
Vintage - Non-Vintage
Bottle Size - 6 x 750ml
ABV - 12.8%