'The Grind - Seasoned News from Pepper Tree'

SEASONED NEWS FROM PEPPER TREE

ISSUE 23 WINTER 2015

WINTER SPECIALS WINE REVIEWS 2015 Wine Club Events Calendar

2015

Winery Update

by Winemaker Scott Comyns

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Welcome It has been a busy couple of months here at Pepper Tree! The leaves have fallen and the frosted mornings are settling in, all the while, the winery team has been busy turning a great Harvest into some fabulous wines for us to soon enjoy! Our Annual Harvest Luncheon provided us with a taste of the new vintage whites of Semillon and Verdelho. Check out page three for Scott’s winery update.

We have been lucky enough to have hosted a number of exciting Member Functions already this year; however

we are eager to say that the best is yet to come! Over the next couple of months we are set to visit Canberra, Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne, as well as host the Spring Food & Wine Celebration, Annual Pooch Picnic and Q4 Winemakers Table Luncheon to name a few!

Be sure to have a look at our 2015 Wine Club Events Calendar on page four to see what is coming up. Phone the Wine Club on 1800 655 965 to make a booking.

We look forward to welcoming you and your friends to the Cellar Door over the cooler months to enjoy some of our new releases by the warmth of the fireplace.

We now also have antipasto platters available for purchase in the Members Tasting Lounge, so please let us know when you plan to visit so that we can book you into the Lounge for that special VIP experience!

Cheers,

The Pepper Tree Team

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Don’t forget to #PepperTreeWines when enjoying your next glass or bottle!

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Some great wine at #PepperTreeWines

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ISSUE 23

WINTER 2015

Nothing like cheese and red wine!

News from the

Winemaker Scott Com y ns

2 014 L en E va ns S c hol a r

Winter in the Winery There is no rest after the end of a busy vintage! It was straight into blending and bottling our early release whites of Semillon, Verdelho and Sauvignon Blanc. Having a challenging year in the Hunter, I am very happy to see the quality of wine that we were able to produce.

The highlight of this year is the preparation of the 2014 Hunter Valley Shiraz. We were making a lot of noise about the great vintage last year and I have just recently tasted over 100 different parcels of Hunter Shiraz to complete our classification of wines, and let me tell you it has been worth all of the hype! With exceptional flavour concentration, structure and elegance being a common feature of the 2014 vintage. We can now only hope that Pepper Tree can make it a hat-trick of Trophies at the upcoming Hunter Valley Wine Show for best red wine of show!

Cheers, Scott Comyns

CLUB

Some of the extensive benefits of the ‘Q4’ Club include:

‘Q4’ stands behind our philosophy of providing ‘Quality’ wine on a ‘Quarterly’ basis.

• Receive 20% off Grand Reserve, Reserve, Single Vineyard and Limited Release Ranges • 30% off all Varietal Range • Complimentary invitation for you and your guest to attend one of Pepper Tree’s Member Events of your choice throughout the year

Limited spaces are available for this exclusive Club.

Contact us today for an information package!

• Invitation to exclusive ‘Q4’ events such as the Benchmark Tasting, Winemaker’s Table Luncheon and ‘Q4’ Christmas Cruise

Join this exclusive membership and receive first priority access to all Reserve and Single Vineyard wines upon release, along with additional discounts and extensive privileges. Membership is available to a limited number of members and holds an increased commitment of 2 cases per quarter.

Members are offered flexibility with their choice of wine received along with the Winemakers personal recommendations per quarter.

• Detailed tasting notes included in every wine delivery • James Halliday’s Australian Wine Companion upon release each year signed by our Chief Winemaker Scott Comyns • Voucher for two at ‘Chef Hatted’ Restaurant Bistro Molines, Mount View to the value of $150.00 along with a bottle of Sparkling ‘Silenus’ to enjoy on your arrival • Free freight Australia wide on all purchases plus much more...

For an information package and membership form, please call the Pepper Tree Wine Club on 1800 655 965 or email ptwclub@peppertreewines.com.au

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FUNCTION REVIEW Annual Harvest Luncheon

Pepper Tree hosts a number of Wine Club Member Functions throughout the year.

Please phone the Wine Club on 1800 655 965 or email ptwclub@peppertreewines.com.au for further information.

Once again our annual Harvest Luncheon was a fantastic celebration of fine wine, food, music and art! Sitting by the warmth of the homely fireplace at Circa 1876, guests enjoyed lightly seared kingfish, honey glazed jumbo quail and poached pears as part of a delightful five-course degustation menu prepared by Head Chef George Francisco and his team.

Brisbane Members’ Dinner

We unveiled the 8th edition to our Harvest plate series by local artist Danielle McManus and Chief Winemaker Scott Comyns took great pride in showing off some of his handy work exclusively releasing the latest vintages of Semillon and Verdelho. 2016 will mark our 10th Annual Harvest Luncheon so be sure to make a booking soon to avoid disappointment.

Having visited Sydney earlier in year, it was time to pay a visit to our Brisbane Members and one of our favourite Brisbane restaurants, Moda.

Head Chef Javier Codina once again wowed our guests with a delectable menu, perfectly matched to some of Pepper Trees finest wines!

2015 Wine Club

EVENTS

Calendar

Month

Date

JUN

FRI 19th

Canberra Members’ Dinner

The Boat House by the Lake, Barton ACT

JUL

Fri 17th

Brisbane Members’ Dinner

Restaurant Two, Edward Street, Brisbane QLD

SUN 9th

Pooch Picnic

Pepper Tree Wines, Pokolbin NSW

SAT 15th

‘Q4’ Winemakers Table Luncheon

The Winery, Pepper Tree Wines NSW

FRI 11TH

Melbourne Members’ Dinner

Matteo’s Restaurant, Fitzroy Nth, VIC

FRI 25TH

Sydney Members’ Dinner

Venue TBC

SAT 17th

Spring Food & Wine Celebration

Pepper Tree Wines, Pokolbin NSW

Fri 13th

Sydney Harbour Evening Cruise 7-10pm Sydney Harbour, NSW

SAT 14TH

Sydney Harbour Afternoon Cruise 2-5pm Sydney Harbour, NSW

SUN 6th

‘Q4’ Christmas Cruise 2-5pm

AUG

SEP OCT NOV DEC

Function

Venue

Sydney Harbour, NSW

To Book please email ptwclub@peppertreewines.com.au or phone Freecall 1800 655 965 Conditions: Event details subject to change. Due to the extremely high and growing demand, some events may have set ticket limitations per membership.

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2014 ‘Venus Block’ Chardonnay We are pleased to provide you with the intense cool climate “Venus Block” Chardonnay from our vineyard in Orange. A crisp and elegant style of Chardonnay with flavours of stone fruits, melon and fig seductively integrated with barrel ferment complexity.

Tasting Notes Situated at our high-altitude vineyard in Orange, the “Venus Block” at 800m above sea level, is perfectly suited to Chardonnay. The 2014 Vintage provided a crisp and elegant style of Chardonnay, showing great purity of fruit.

Vintage Notes The season started well, with adequate rain and mild weather up until Christmas. The New Year brought with it a few minor rain events which kept the vineyard staff very busy. Veraison commenced in early February 2014 and a long ripening period. Chardonnay was the stand out of the whites with excellent acid levels.

Click here for Detailed Tasting Notes

Club Member Price $29.50 ‘Q4’ Member Price $28.00 RRP $35.00

2012 ‘Calcare’ Cabernet Sauvignon We are pleased to provide you with our Reserve 2012 “Calcare” Cabernet Sauvignon from Coonawarra. The “Calcare” is selected from the best rows of our small vineyard in the world famous Coonawarra region, famous for its thin rocky soils and underlying soft crumbly limestone (Calcare).

Tasting Notes The “Calcare” is a fine example of the Coonawarra style, with ripe cassis fruits and lifted spice and florals. The fine structured Cabernet will gain further complexity with cellaring.

Vintage Notes 2012 was an excellent vintage all-round. Solid winter rain with bursts of warm weather provided optimal growing conditions. Drier than normal conditions throughout the summer months led to small berries and yields but wonderful fruit quality overall.

Awards and Reviews 95 Points – James Halliday 2015 Australia Wine Companion comments, by Campbell Mattinson - ‘Classy package. Fruit beats on against a current of tannin. Peanuts, eucalypt, cassis and smoky mineral notes. Woody, leafy character emphasise varietal character. So clean, so disciplined, so lengthy.

Not made to be consumed young. Drink to 2030.

Click here for Detailed Tasting Notes

Club Member Price $35.50 ‘Q4’ Member Price $33.60 RRP $42.00

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Staff Profile Trystan Brown Cellar Door Sales How long have you been working at Pepper Tree Wines?

Four months.

What do you like most about working at Pepper Tree Wines?

How it all feels like family here. ELE – Everyone Loves Everyone!

What is your favourite Pepper Tree wine currently available?

This is actually a really tough question. I will say the Strandlines and The Gravels, although there is fierce competition from some of the other red wines.

What has been the strangest comment/question someone has said?

A lady renamed the Coquun ‘Fifty Shades of Red.’

Sunday 9th August 2015 10.30am to 3.30pm Entry Gold coin to be donated to Guide Dogs NSW/ACT Call 02 4909 7100 or visit www.peppertreewines.com.au for more information

What is your greatest weakness?

Tuk Tuk, the Hunter Valley burger hot spot!

LOCAL HUNTER VALLEY ROASTERS

OPEN DAILY

9.30am to 3.30pm

One of the Hunter’s top rated coffee destinations highlighting the synergies between coffee beans and wine grapes.

Award winning coffee Featured Single Origin coffee available daily Coffee beans available for sale Light food options & sweet treats

TRY OUR NEW

Contango Burger and Crisps $15.00 Mention the code: CONTANGOWINTER and receive 10% OFF your bill.

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WINTER 2015

Selection of specialty teas Range of Contango merchandise facebook/ContangoEspressoRoasters twitter/@ContangoCafe Instagram/@Contango_Roasters

Winter

To place your order simply complete the attached Order Form or follow the links to our Online Shop

Specials 1

Winter Mixed Dozen

SAVE

$101.00 + free freight

Inclusive of 3 bottles of each of the below: 2014 Limited Release Polly Fumé Hunter|Orange Semillon Sauvignon Blanc 2014 Reserve ‘Venus Block’ Orange Chardonnay 2013 Limited Release ‘The Pebbles’ Wrattonbully Shiraz Viognier 2012 Reserve ‘Calcare’ Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon *Tasting Notes included

Wine Club Members Case Special

$289.00

2

+ Free

Freight

(RRP $390.00)

Winter Red Dozen

SAVE

$118.00 + free freight

Inclusive of 3 bottles of each of the below: 2013 Limited Release Orange Pinot Noir 2013 Limited Release ‘The Pebbles’ Wrattonbully Shiraz Viognier 2010 Reserve ‘14 Shores’ Wrattonbully Merlot 2012 Reserve ‘Calcare’ Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon *Tasting Notes included

Wine Club Members Case Special

$299.00 7

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ISSUE 23

WINTER 2015

+ Free

Freight

(RRP $417.00)

5

minutes with...

Lillie

ONLY

39.95

$

We are delighted to introduce you to one of our valued Pet Club members – Lillie.

Lillie with Elderslee Road

Age: 7 in December, 2015 Breed: Border Collie Favourite Food: She loves anything but her favourite food would be whatever the cat leaves in his bowl.

Favourite Toy: That would be a tossup between a soccer ball and a stick – both equally loved.

Pet Hate: A bath. You only have to mention the word and she goes hiding.

A day in the life of Lillie: Lillie starts her day with a walk around the neighbourhood and to the local park. She has a lovely backyard to roam if she is there alone, otherwise she sits on the front verandah and watches everyone on the street walk by. There is a bird feeder in the yard which she loves to chase the cockatoos from so the parrots can eat. There are a lot of doggie friends in the area and she catches up with them on her morning walks or walks in the afternoon when we all get home.

The night is spent sitting in the lounge room with the family and finally she goes to bed with one of the girls or on her fluffy pink blanket in our room.

The weekends are a varied choice with going to soccer and chasing balls or going to the dog beach at Pittwater with her best friend Mischa (also a Border Collie).

Other info about Lillie: Lillie is a major part of our family and life with her is wonderful!

Being a family owned business, we understand the importance of including the entire family into the Wine Club, hence why we have extended our membership to include your canine friend.

One off Joining fee of $39.95 Receive a Pepper Tree Pet Lead (Members Price $18.00) Treat for your furry friend in your Wine Club commitment case Membership Certificate Complimentary bowl of water and treat upon their visit to the winery 1 bottle of Pepper Tree Varietal Range wine

86 Halls Road, Pokolbin NSW 2320 AUSTRALIA P 02 4909 7100

F 02 4998 7746

Freecall 1800 655 965

E ptwclub@peppertreewines.com.au

www.peppertreewines.com.au

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