Sommeliers Australia Aligoté Masterclass

Handpicked Wines, Melbourne
Tasted Monday, February 10, 2025 - Tuesday, February 11, 2025 by wongstonn with 147 views

Introduction

Sommelers Australia Aligoté Masterclass, held at Handpicked Wines, Melbourne. Hosted by Wiremu Andrews, Greg Lightfoot and Sophie Darling of Darling Estate

Flight 1 - Newly bottled Australian Aligoté (3 Notes)

  • 2024 Bande Apart Aligoté

    Australia, Victoria, North East, King Valley

    (2/11/2025)

    Tasted as part of a masterclass with the caveat that the producers and organisers debated whether this wine was too young to be tasted, since it has been in bottle onle a few weeks. Palew lemon, medium+ intensity, dry, high acid with flavours of lemon, apple and sherbert, maybe some white flowers. perceived sweetness on nose as opposed to actual sweetness.3 barrels made. Too early to score, but every reason to think this wioll develop fine with time.

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  • 2024 Sentiō Aligoté

    Australia, Victoria, North East, King Valley

    (2/10/2025)

    Tasted as part of a masterclass with the caveat that the producers and organisers debated whether this wine was too young to be tasted, since it has been in bottle onle a few weeks. More restrained tha the Bande Apart Aligoté '24 that came earlier in the flight, but none the worse for it. Pale lemon, medium intensity on nose, dry, high acid with flavours of grapefruit, lemon, and some crteamy/yoghurt/sourdough. Too early to score, but every reason to think this will develop fine with time.

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  • 2024 Tillie J Aligoté

    Australia, Victoria, North East, King Valley

    (2/10/2025)

    Tasted as part of a masterclass with the caveat that the producers and organisers debated whether this wine was too young to be tasted, since it has been in bottle only a few weeks. Pale lemon, medium intensity on nose, dry, high acid with flavours of grapefruit, lemon, and hint of toast (neutral oak?) and biscuit. Too early to score, but every reason to think this will develop fine with time.

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Flight 2 - One year old Australian Aligoté (3 Notes)

  • 2023 Darling Estate Aligoté 90 Points

    Australia, Victoria, North East, King Valley

    (2/11/2025)

    Tasted as part of a masterclass. Wine #1 of the second bracket which had one year old Australian Aligotés. With one year the flavours are beginning to fill out. Medium to medium+ intensity nose, aromas of lemon, milk, grapefruit, floral and a wee hint of toast (neutral oak?) Dry, high acid, medium alcohol, medium finish. Good now, especially as a refreshing aperitif. The evidence from later flights is that this will improve with more age.

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  • 2023 Tillie J Aligoté 90 Points

    Australia, Victoria, North East, King Valley

    (2/10/2025)

    Tasted as part of a masterclass. Wine #2 of the second bracket which had one year old Australian Aligotés. Had the newer '24 in the first flight. With one year the flavours are beginning to fill out though the wine remains youthful. Toast, apple, white peach, milk. Compared to the '24 the body is filling out to medium+. Good. Enjoyable. Good value for money.

    Offical notes: "The bunches came into the winery after weathering a decent downpour of rain but in great
    condition. Whole bunch pressed and cold settled in tank. Racked cleanly off lees to 2 neutral barriques, 1 stainless barrel and 1 new french oak barrique. Chardonnay lees were added for greater pallet weight and texture, the wine was cooled and sulfur was added post primary fermentation. The wine was stored for a further 6 months in oak on lees before blending, stabilization, fining and filtration. Bottling took place in October."

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  • 2023 Terrason Aligoté 90 Points

    Australia, Victoria, North East, King Valley

    (2/11/2025)

    Tasted as part of an Aligoté masterclass. Wine #3 of the second bracket which had one year old Australian Aligotés. Most oak influence of the wines in this flight. Hazelnut and toast. Apple skin and white stonefruit. Good.

    Winemaker notes: "Picked at around 11.5 baumé, de-stemmed before spending 12 hours skin contact. Pressed and then sent to oak for fermentation. Natural ferment took around six months to complete (our cellar gets seriously cold in autumn!). Racked to the tank in January before being prepared for bottling."

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Flight 3 - More one year old Australian Aligoté (3 Notes)

  • 2023 Garagiste Aligoté Tuerong 89 Points

    Australia, Victoria, Port Phillip, Mornington Peninsula

    (2/10/2025)

    Tasted as part of an Aligoté masterclass. Wine #1 of the third bracket. Several of the somms in the masterclass were effusive about this wine. I thought it fine but didn't share the joy. Very pale, Medium + nose with aromatics in the floral, yellow citrus and white peach range. Stony mineralogy. It’s youthful and with 10 minutes rounds out with some air. Crisp acidity makes it a candidate for a refreshing aperitif. Good.

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  • 2023 Blind Corner Chardonnay Aligoté Quindalup 91 Points

    Australia, Western Australia, South West Australia, Margaret River

    (2/11/2025)

    Tasted as part of an Aligoté masterclass. Wine #2 of the third bracket. A blend with chardonnay. Nice aroma. Smells like chardonnay which given it makes us 92% of the fruit is no surprise. But not feeling a difference from pure Chardy. Stone fruit, white peach, milk. The Margaret River chardonnay softens the acidity from the Aligoté, and provides more body and a rich rounded mouthfeel relative to the preceding seven pure Aligotés. Good value.

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  • 2023 Sentiō Aligoté

    Australia, Victoria, North East, King Valley

    (2/10/2025)

    Tasted as part of an Aligoté masterclass. Wine #3 of the third bracket following a chardonnay (92%), Aligoté (8%) blend. This is nervy and taut in comparison now the generous chardonnay no longer present. Pale, spritzy, floral, red apple, sourdough.

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Flight 4 - 2022 Aligoté from Burgundy and Australia (2 Notes)

  • 2022 Olivier Morin Bourgogne-Aligoté 90 Points

    France, Burgundy, Bourgogne-Aligoté

    (2/10/2025)

    Flight 4, wine 1. White flowers, citrus and white stone fruit. Maybe from cream/sourdough. Dry, with high acidity. Feels youthful and has good balance and complexity.

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  • 2022 Darling Estate Aligoté 92 Points

    Australia, Victoria, North East, King Valley

    (2/10/2025)

    Good to VG wine. Developing, with notes of white stone fruit, biscuits, cream, ginger, spice and dried orange peel. Enjoyed the M+ body. Medium intensity. Good value.

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Flight 5 - 2021/22 Aligoté from Burgundy (3 Notes)

  • 2022 Guilhem et Jean-Hugues Goisot Bourgogne-Aligoté 92 Points

    France, Burgundy, Bourgogne-Aligoté

    (2/10/2025)

    I found this an energising wine due to its refrreshing acidity. Flinty, grapefruit, white flowers, white peach, fennel seed. I highlight so far in the tasting.

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  • 2022 Clotilde Davenne Bourgogne-Aligoté Vieilles Vignes 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Bourgogne-Aligoté

    (2/10/2025)

    M+ body, M+ finish. White flowers, whote peach, Fuji apple, yoghurt, sourdough,

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  • 2021 Petit-Roy Bourgogne-Aligoté 93 Points

    France, Burgundy, Bourgogne-Aligoté

    (2/11/2025)

    A cut above the majority of the other Aligotés in this masterclass, though at risk of being polarising. The somms in the masterclass struggled to think how they'd be able to place this on the wine list. Since I'm not a somm I don't have that problems. Liked it. Long finish and high intensity with bruided appe cooked buitter, cheese flavours, nuts. Individual.

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Flight 6 - Coche, Bouzeron and (3 Notes)

  • 2022 Domaine Fabien Coche Bourgogne-Aligoté Vieilles Vignes 92 Points

    France, Burgundy, Bourgogne-Aligoté

    (2/11/2025)

    Cheese, nuts, bruised apple, bergamont, cashew. Lots going on. Tropical. Interesting

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  • 2021 Chapuis & Chapuis Bouzeron 92 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte Chalonnaise, Bouzeron

    (2/10/2025)

    Flowers and white peach. Long finish. M+ body. Dry

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  • 2018 Terrason Aligoté 92 Points

    Australia, Victoria, North East, King Valley

    (2/10/2025)

    Rich. Dried apricot, peach. M+ finish. V.Good. Not sure whether this woulld getter better with age. Might be time to drink up.

    Winemaker's notes:
    “My first experience with Aligoté was in Gevrey Chambertin which was made into a stunning Bourgogne Blanc for staff and clients, later in Meursault a more serious rendition. Often misunderstood it’s an age-worthy variety that can be cellared for a decade and more. Expect to see citrus, alpine herbs, and a saline/brininess that is derived from the iron rich ancient volcanic soils.”

    Grafted three winters ago from cuttings taken in the Mornington Peninsula. Grown in the deep volcanic soils of Whitfield in the King Valley. Hand picked, crushed and pressed straight to a stainless steel tank for natural fermentation on full solids. Nine month elevage without any movement. A much more traditional Aligoté.

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