ONE was the founder of the Pandora jewellery company in Australia, the other an executive at a Sydney-based Japanese reinsurance company, and this month these two women have starred as wine producers.
They are Karin Adcock, owner of Winmark Wines at Broke in the Upper Hunter Valley, and Lisa Bray, owner-winemaker of the LMB wine brand at Mudgee.
Lisa, who works full-time at Robert Stein Wines, produced the Orange-sourced LMB 2022 Riesling that won the best white wine trophy and the 96-point best any vintage riesling of the 2022 NSW Small Winemakers Show at Forbes.
Karin's $55 Winmark 2021 Single Vineyard Reserve Chardonnay won the best young chardonnay trophy and a gold medal in the 2021 chardonnay class.
Karin had a 20-year business career that included building the Pandora jewellery company in Australia and New Zealand from 2004, following up from 2013 as Danish FLEYE eyewear's distributor and from 2015 to 2018 as distributor of the US Alex and Ani jewellery brand.
Her life changed dramatically in 2016 when she bought the 53-hectare former David Clarke Poole's Rock property, but not the brand name. With the aid of vineyard manager Dave Grosser, top Hunter-based viticulturalist Liz Riley, consultant John Belsham and Agnew Wines chief winemaker Xanthe Hatcher, Karin has revitalised the 14-hectare all-chardonnay vineyard and added a cellar door, four tourist guest houses and a sculpture park and gallery.
Sydneysider Lisa Bray's initial career was in reinsurance, but a 1999 return from trips to European wine regions sparked a sea change into a wine science degree course and to a series of winemaking jobs in the Hunter Valley, Germany, New Zealand and Turkey, and ultimately into 14 years of Mudgee vintages. She's worked in a number of Mudgee wineries and now, in addition to her LMB operation, is part of the Robert Stein Wines team.
The NSW Small Winemakers Wine Show has been running at Forbes since 1992 and this year's show saw the Andrew Thomas 2021 Elenay Shiraz judged the best red, De Iuliis the most successful exhibitor and Mercer Wines the most successful new exhibitor.
The Robert Stein 2022 Half-Dry Riesling was the best off-dry white wine, the De Iuliis 2022 LDR Semillon the best young semillon, the Tintilla Estate 2015 Angus Semillon the best old semillon, the Carillion 2022 Expressions Pinot Gris the best pinot gris/pinot grigio, the Jeir Creek 2022 Canberra Sauvignon the best sauvignon blanc.
WINE REVIEWS
CHARDONNAY WINNER
JUDGED the 2022 NSW Small Winemakers Show's best young chardonnay, this Winmark 2021 Single Vineyard Reserve Chardonnay is brassy hued and fig and brioche scented. The front palate shows expressive nectarine flavour, the middle loquat, mineral, nougat and cashew oak and a finish of flinty acid. At winmarkwines.com.au and Broke cellar door.
PRICE: $55.
DRINK WITH: paella.
AGEING: nine years.
RATING: 5 stars
FORERUNNER EXCELS
THIS fine LMB Wines 2021 Orange Riesling, the forerunner of the 2022 champion, won the best any vintage riesling trophy in the 2021 Forbes judging and has green-tinted straw hues and honeysuckle scents. The front palate shows elegant lime flavour, the middle Granny Smith apple, lemon zest and gunmetal characters and a finish of slatey acid.
PRICE: $35.
DRINK WITH: tapas.
AGEING: eight years.
RATING: 5 stars
TOP-RANK RED BLEND
THE best red blend at Forbes, the Hungerford Hill 2021 Hilltops Tempranillo-Graciano has 14% alcohol, gamey aromas and bright garnet hues. The front palate has intense mulberry flavour, spicy black cherry, briar, mint and savoury oak on the middle and a finish of ferric tannins. At Pokolbin winery, hungerfordhill.com.au and Dan Murphy's.
PRICE: $45.
DRINK WITH: osso bucco.
AGEING: 10 years.
RATING: 5 stars
Read also:
- Multi-million dollar plan for Trinity Point marina expansion approved
- Lake Mac firebug sentenced for torching cars, mattresses, garbage
- Belmont South machete killer will be out early after appeal
-
Royal pain as double demerits strike early in honour of Queen public holiday
WHAT DO YOU THINK? We've made it a whole lot easier for you to have your say. Our new comment platform requires only one log-in to access articles and to join the discussion on the Newcastle Herald website. Find out how to register so you can enjoy civil, friendly and engaging discussions. Sign up for a subscription here.
OR IF YOUR PIECE HAS CLOSED COMMENTS
