When I tasted the Curly Flat wines many years ago, I was stunned by just how good they were. This would have been in the early to mid-2000s and these wines were hugely impressive in the context of New World Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
Today, the wines are even better, and they are hugely impressive in the context of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay – full stop. Simply put, they are no longer in need of being defined or categorised as New World to attract plaudits.
Jancis Robinson wrote an engaging article for the FT entitled ‘New World Order’, in which she discussed global Pinot Noir and the fact that Burgundy, on account of climate change, had started to produce much more potent styles with higher alcohol. Commenting on her tasting of 280 red burgundies, she commented that some were ‘just too bold and sweet to fit into my idea of the red burgundy paradigm’. Conversely, she argued ‘there has been a real evolution in the style of wine made by the top exponents of Pinot Noir outside France. Their wines are so much more subtle than they used to be’, adding that while a generalisation, her advice is to ‘abandon any lingering prejudice against Pinot Noir grown outside Burgundy’. Among her accompanying list of recommended Pinot Noir producers, we find Curly Flat. And in case you think Jancis is only a champion of the Curly Flat Pinot Noir, she once commented of an early vintage of the Chardonnay, that it was ‘an absolute dead ringer for mature white Burgundy’ and that ‘the French should be force fed with this (Curly Flat Chardonnay)’.
When I first tasted, it was clear that the wines had a rare precision and purity, largely imparted by the vineyard location and its climate. Curly Flat is one of the pioneers of cool-climate viticulture in Australia – respected wine critic, James Halliday, once commented that for Macedon, ‘Site selection, the careful matching of site and grape variety, razor sharp canopy management, and relatively low yields are all prerequisites for success’. I think this is key to Curly’s success – they tick all these boxes. The Macedon Ranges is one of the coolest wine-growing regions on the Australian mainland. Altitude plays the pivotal role in determining just how cool the exact site is. It is worth noting that Mount Macedon is a little over 1000 metres high – consequently, the vineyards of Curly Flat lie between 400 and 700 metres, and it takes attentive viticulture to deliver this quality with such unerring regularity. The area of Macedon is characterised by a number of small estates and it is Chardonnay and Pinot Noir that dominate production. Both of these varieties are able to gain a rare elegance of expression, ripe but never overblown and underscored by fine natural acidities.
Over years, things evolve and, with the departure of former joint owner and winemaker Phillip Moraghan a few years ago, the now sole owner of the estate, Jenifer Kolkka, took the step of bringing in Matt Harrop as winemaker. Despite being a Kiwi, Matt had previously worked for several other Australian estates and, having always been intrigued by fine Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, he jumped at the chance to work at Curly Flat and to understand its unique terroir. What has impressed me so much is that Matt has gently looked to refine the approach at Curly – this is very much a question of evolution not revolution and Jenny wanted to retain the style and reputation of the estate. Replacing a talented winemaker and picking up the reins with no perceptible change in quality or style is no mean feat, but to elevate the quality and refine the style without losing the context is something different altogether. To my mind, Matt has been instrumental in inching the quality of Curly Flat’s Chardonnay and Pinot Noir forward, notably in the last two vintages. And it is a case of ‘inching’ forward with one percent gains; it is these small refinements and tweaks to the viticultural approach and the winemaking, and the willingness to constantly push for them, that gently lifts quality from an already established producer.
Please see below my notes on the two 2019s.