Briar Ridge Off the Press - Autumn 2014

OFF THE

PRESS AUTUMN 2014 ISSUE 66 www.briarridge.com.au

WINNING

WINES!

BRIAR RIDGE WINnERS PAGE 8 ROBERT IS BACK! PAGE 2 Winery News PAGE 6 AND MORE...

Hello

Vintage Club Members, Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Stephanie Parker and I am delighted to join Briar Ridge as the new Vintage Club Manager. I am really excited to be joining the team here during what has been one of the most exciting vintages for many years.

I have been working in the Hunter Valley wine industry for over ten years and it is a place I truly call home. Over the years my passion for the region and its magnificent produce has developed. Briar Ridge is one of the most prestigious and awarded wineries in the valley and I am very excited to be joining the Chief Winemaker Gwyn Olsen, and the wonderful team here.

It certainly looks like I have picked a great year to come on board! This 2014 vintage is certain to go down in history as one of the truly great years. The weather gods were certainly smiling on the Hunter this year with perfect conditions providing fruit that could only be described as pristine. Our winemaker Gwyn is beyond ecstatic, with a winery full of fantastic fruit, which will produce some of the best wines the Hunter has seen in years.

I am also very happy to announce that Robert and Sally Molines, icons of the Hunter food scene, have returned to Briar Ridge to cater for all of our weddings and functions.

We are thrilled to have them back, so if you or any friends or family are considering any type of function, party, or wedding then Briar Ridge is the ideal venue.

We have a very exciting year ahead and I look forward to meeting all of you at one of our upcoming events or at the Cellar Door. In the meantime pour yourself a glass and enjoy reading ‘Off the Press’.

Stephanie Parker Vintage Club Manager

OFF THE PRESS | autumn 2014 | ISSUE 66 PAGE 1

ROBERT

IS BACK! Indeed after some absence, Bistro Molines is back at Briar Ridge. I am very excited to be working with some wonderful new members of staff, Stephanie Parker, Briar Ridge Vintage Club Manager, who will be heading up all the function bookings, assisted

by Katie Power from our team at Bistro Molines. Between them, these two lovely ladies will be on hand to organise any type of celebration, corporate function or wedding as well as the special Vintage Club Member events.

Katie will be working closely with myself and Sally from Bistro Molines, housed at Tallavera Grove, to supply all of the functions at Briar Ridge moving forward.

We have come back on board to offer this wonderful Briar Ridge space for all special occasions. It is a unique destination, one of the most beautiful

in the valley, surrounded by tranquil gardens and views across the Mount View range.

We have been busy performing some renovation work so that we can operate all year around with comfort, perfect for any occasion, in any season.

Of course the food and wine are the essential ingredients, to marry our provincial french cuisine with Briar’s award winning wines. Our highly skilled team of chefs have worked with myself and Sally for many years and look forward to extending our five star service to all functions at Briar Ridge.

So for your next special occasion why not come and see us at Briar Ridge.

Bon Appetit!

Robert Molines

OFF THE PRESS | autumn 2014 | ISSUE 66 PAGE 2

WEDDINGS & FUNCTIONS AT BRIAR RIDGE

With Robert and Sally Molines back on board at Briar Ridge, our wedding and functions packages will now include their five star cuisine. Matched with our award winning wines, and beautiful setting, every event will be truly special.

In addition to this we can offer indoor and covered spaces with either cocktail or sit down options, served alongside our Premium or Deluxe drinks packages, we can cater to any event.

The vineyards and carefully landscaped gardens provide a stunning backdrop for photographs and they are an ideal ceremony location.

You can download our full wedding and function information packages on our website at www.briarridge.com.au/weddings--functions

OFF THE PRESS | autumn 2014 | ISSUE 66 PAGE 3

NEW!

TASTING PLATTERS

AT BRIAR RIDGE As a wine producer, Briar Ridge makes wine to accompany food so it makes perfect sense that our guests can taste our wines with our food, onsite.

After speaking to our guests and receiving some great feedback, we know that a lot of people visiting the Hunter Valley are looking for a casual alternative to “a la carte� dining. In response to this, we are now offering special locally sourced tasting platters to enjoy whilst sampling our wine at the Cellar Door. Each platter includes some of the finest local cheese and condiments from our providores, as well as our own Vignerons Platter.

The Vignerons Platter features simple delicious produce, served fresh each day for you to enjoy alongside our award winning wines. We also offer beautiful fresh coffee made using premium, locally roasted beans.

If you would like to try the platters for yourself, why not book in with some family or friends? Call Stephanie, or any of the staff at our cellar door, prior to your visit to ensure we have your table reserved for you and your guests.

Contact us by email cellardoor@briarridge.com.au or call us on (02) 4990 3670.

OFF THE PRESS | autumn 2014 | ISSUE 66 PAGE 4

Vineyard Update The Hunter Valley has just experienced one of the earliest vintages on record for most grape growers in the region. The hot and dry conditions that started in spring and continued into summer were a stark contrast to the previous vintages that were wet with mild temperatures. This season the vineyard team were kept busy trying to keep the vines watered and healthy without the help of any rain.

At Briar Ridge Vineyard we started harvesting our Chardonnay on Jan 8th, which is around two weeks earlier than usual. With other white varieties such as Verdelho and Semillon next to be picked followed by the red varieties in early February.

Winery

News

BY GWYN OLSEN

Vintage was extremely fast and trouble-free with no rain falling until after we had finished in mid-February. The vines have produced good tonnages and some great flavours this vintage that are now fermenting in the winery, keeping the winery team very busy.

At Briar Ridge we use both mechanical Harvesters as well as a team of hand pickers.

This year we have handpicked select blocks to maintain the highest quality of fruit which will produce some standout wines for 2014.

As vintage comes to an end its time to unwind with a glass of Briar Ridge wine and reflect on the previous 12 months and start planning for vintage 2015...

Cheers,

Belinda

Vineyard Manager

The winery is now winding down after a very successful Hunter Valley harvest. It was a very exciting year for us, with optimal dry conditions right up to the end of harvest.

For the first time in my experience in the Hunter we were able to pick based on flavour ripeness and not if it was going to rain!

The end results are looking very tasty. The 2014 Semillons have great precision and drive, with a lovely chalky acidity and pure lemon notes building the wines.

The Chardonnay is particularly exciting with intense mid palate fruit expression and delicious texture. And following a few dismal years in the red department it is fabulous to have a winery full of absolutely top notch Hunter Shiraz – dark and brooding packed with supple berry fruits on the mid palate and an underlying cocoa like tannin. We have now pressed all of our reds off skins and are looking forward to getting them tucked away in oak for the next 12-18 months.

Gwyn Olsen

OFF THE PRESS | autumn 2014 | ISSUE 66 PAGE 5

OFF THE PRESS | autumn 2014 | ISSUE 66 PAGE 6

WINE STYLES This year will see a few changes in the Briar Ridge portfolio.

This “Hunter River Burgundy” will be a blend of the Pinot Noir and Shiraz off the vineyard and will pay homage to one of the original great wines of the region.

our latest awards and accolades

We are shifting focus back to our true roots of Hunter Valley wines, produced from our stunning vineyards. We have introduced a few new and different wine styles, whilst ensuring we maintain our classic varieties. In the whites, from 2014, we will have ‘The Briar’, a white vineyard blend made from several different grape varieties. We have moved away from having an out-of-region

dessert wine, to making a Hunter Valley, Late Harvest Traminer, and we will be making some further adjustments to our Single Vineyard Chardonnay style.

From a red wine perspective, we will be introducing a H.R.B into our Single Vineyard portfolio.

AWARDS

NEW

GOLD

GOLD

GOLD

Hunter Valley Wine Show 2013

GOLD

2013 Dairy Hill Single Vineyard Hunter Valley Semillon Members bottle price $28 | RRP $35

2013 Briar Ridge Fumé Blanc Hunter Valley | Orange Semillon Sauvignon Blanc Members bottle price $21 | RRP $26

Royal Melbourne NSW Wine GOLD Awards 2013 Wine Show 2013 2013 Karl Stockhausen Signature Hunter Valley Semillon

2013 Dairy Hill Single Vineyard Hunter Valley Semillon

Members bottle price $22 | RRP $28

Members bottle price $28 | RRP $35

Dan Murphys National Wine Show of Australia 2013

royal sydney wine show 2014

GOLD

2013 Dairy Hill Single Vineyard Hunter Valley Semillon Members bottle price $28 | RRP $35

SAVE $48

Winewise Small Vigneron Awards 2013

2013 Karl Stockhausen Signature Hunter Valley Semillon Members bottle price $22 | RRP $28

Gold Medal 6 Pack Special Includes 2 bottles of each of the mentioned Gold medal wines Members Price - $142 plus Free Freight Retail Price - $190 (Including Freight)

OFF THE PRESS | autumn 2014 | ISSUE 66 PAGE 7

OFF THE PRESS | autumn 2014 | ISSUE 66 PAGE 8

Events

CHARDONNAY

IS BACK!

BRIAR RIDGE ANNOUNCED AS OFFICAL RACE DAY SPONSOR FOR DAY 3 OF THE PORT TO PORT MTB 2014.

Chardonnay is back, and in a big way.

Celebrating this new elegant style is our Single Vineyard Briar Hill Chardonnay.

With its subtle hints of white peach and melon, with rich mid palate texture and delicate notes of lemon zest for a crisp finish, it is perfect to enjoy at any time of the year.

Whether you are a hot Summer sunshine lover, or prefer to cosy up in front of the fire on a cool Winters night, we have two recipes perfectly matched to enjoy our Briar Hill Chardonnay with...

2011 Briar Hill Single Vineyard Chardonnay Members bottle price $28 RRP $35

For the Summer sunshine lovers, all you will need is:

For those cooler Winter evenings, all you will need is:

1 Bottle Briar Hill Chardonnay (chilled) 250g of Prosciutto 1 Ripe Rockmelon Simply cut the rockmelon into wedges, wrapping a slice of prosciutto around it.

Take one bottle of chilled Briar Hill Chardonnay and a glass – pour liberally.

In addition, simply add some aged cheddar and costello blue cheese, served with your favourite fresh bread.

Enjoy!

1 Bottle of Briar Hill Chardonnay at room temperature I Silverside (slow cooked) 5 Potatoes (mashed) 1 hand full of butter beans (in garlic butter) 6 brussel sprouts, steamed for 3mins (a must) 1 serving of white sauce Slice the beef, and serve over the mashed potato.

Mix the brussel sprouts and butter beans and serve on the side, along with the white sauce.

Take the bottle of Briar Hill Chardonnay, at room temperature, and a glass – pour liberally.

Enjoy!

OFF THE PRESS | autumn 2014 | ISSUE 66 PAGE 9

Port to Port MTB is a 4 day race in May 2014 (29th May – 1st June). The race is designed to be fun and challenging for riders of all levels, from recreational to competitive. Riders will be treated to the iconic local scenery of Port Stephens, Newcastle and the Hunter Valley.

On Saturday May 31st, day three of the race, riders will start at Briar Ridge, taking off for the longest leg of the race. Riders will enjoy the sensational motor bike single track, fire roads and old rail corridors coupled with the magnificent local scenery.

We will be hosting exclusive wine tasting events throughout the day, as well as a special lunch and breakfast menu starting at 8.30am.

For more details on the race, or how to register to participate, take a look at the Port to Port website www.porttoportmtb.com

We want to hear from you!

Your feedback and ideas are very important to us, and we want to make sure that you are getting the most from your membership at Briar Ridge.

If you have any ideas or suggestions across any aspect of the Vintage Wine Club or Cellar Door, then we want to hear from you.

This information will help us form a more detailed member’s survey which will be sent out to you in the next couple of months.

It’s vital to us that we not only provide you with fantastic wines, but great service too and that we meet all of your expectations of the Briar Ridge Vintage Club.

Email vintageclub@briarridge.com.au Phone (02) 4990 3670

OFF THE PRESS | autumn 2014 | ISSUE 66 PAGE 10

OFF THE

PRESS AUTUMN 2014 ISSUE 66 www.briarridge.com.au

Contact Us STEPHANIE PARKER Wine Club Manager Briar Ridge Vineyard 593 Mount View Road, Mount View NSW 2325 Email vintageclub@briarridge.com.au Phone (02) 4990 3670 Fax (02) 4990 7802 www.briarridge.com.au Open 7 days a week for tasting and sales, 10 - 5pm