Stella Bella
Producer website
Stella Bella is a small boutique wine producer located in the Margaret River GI in the beautiful south west of Western Australia. We chose the Margaret River region because we believe it is capable of producing wines to rival those anywhere the world. Our approach has always challenged convention, and we have pioneered several innovative wines that have been first to market. We are a modern creative wine company with a passion for excellence and a no-compromise approach to wine quality. We are always curious to hear about what you think of our wines and always welcome your feedback – drop us a line at wines@stellabella.com.au.
History
Stella Bella Wines was created with the express goal of consistently producing world class wines from the Margaret River GI (Geographical Indicator or demarcated wine region) in Western Australia. It evolved from the fusion of passionate minds and the shared belief in the unique and expressive terroir of Margaret River and was built around a common set of values that still pervades the organisation today; respect, ambition, integrity, passion, pride and determination.
The timeline of our history is as follows:
1996 Janice McDonald and Stuart Pym, the founders and original winemakers take over the Augusta vineyard, later named the Suckfizzle vineyard.
1997 The first wine – the Suckfizzle Sauvignon Blanc Semillon is made – released in late 1998.
2000 The first Stella Bella wine was released (Stella Bella Pink Muscat 2000).
2002 The first Stella Bella white wine was released (Stella Bella Chardonnay 2001).
2002 John Britton comes on board and brings the Isca vineyard resource.
2002 The first Stella Bella red wine was released (Stella Bella Sangiovese Cabernet Sauvignon 2001).
2004 The Skuttlebutt range was launched.
2006 Stella Bella merges with Rosabrook wines and acquires its two vineyards, increasing its vineyard holdings by 40ha.
2007 Purchase of the winery facility in Karridale.
2008 Karridale vineyard was planted to all white varieties
2009 Stella Bella opened its Cellar Door on Rosa Brook Road.
2009 Stella Bella wins Best Chardonnay and Best New World Chardonnay for the Stella Bella Chardonnay 2007 at the Hong Kong International Wine & Spirit Competition.
2010 Stella Bella Serie Luminosa label is launched with the Stella Bella Serie Luminosa Merlot 2007 and Cabernet Sauvignon 2007.
2010 Stella Bella wins the Mission Hill trophy for Best Chardonnay at the International Wine & Spirit Competition, plus trophy for the Best Fuller Bodied Dry White Table Wine at the Sydney International Wine Competition for the Stella Bella Chardonnay 2008.
2010 Janice McDonald, the Stella Bella winemaker at the time, awarded best red winemaker of the year by the authors of the "Big Red Wine Book".
2011 Stella Bella released its first sparkling wine.
The grafting and crafting of this reputation has been and remains a very hands-on journey for Stella Bella Wines. Both owners and staff alike have worked intuitively and with a high level of self belief and trust in one another.
Our future success is inextricably linked to the Margaret River region and the crafting of the best wines possible from this precious and scarce vineyard resource.
Vineyards
Our philosophy regarding viticulture is simple, and that is to operate in a manner that consciously respects the vineyards that we tend as well as the local environment. Margaret River is universally acknowledged as one of the great terroirs of the wine making world with a similar climate to that of Bordeaux and we understand our responsibility to maintain and protect this precious resource.
Stella Bella operates a number of vineyards in Margaret River with a total area under vine of approximately 90 hectares.
In addition to these resources we take fruit from 7-10 contract vineyards consisting mainly of small parcels of high quality fruit. We look to crop at 4-5 tonnes / ha for Cabernet and Chardonnay, and no more than 8 tonnes / ha on Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon to maximise the quality of the end wines.
Viticulture
We use minimal chemical inputs, minimal fertilisers, and minimal intervention as we are aiming for vine balance. We are acutely aware of the environmentally pristine nature of this part of the world, and as custodians of the land, manage our vineyards accordingly. For example, We have introduced Cryptolaemus montrouzieri (the Australian Native Ladybird) to predate on mealy bugs and this has been a very successful natural control measure.
Unlike almost all other wine producing regions, because Western Australia is free from Phylloxera (a devastating grapevine disease), our wines are all on their own roots, and not on root stock, so arguably give us a purer expression of the various cultivars that we grow and the respective sites they are planted in.
Fruit is picked on a combination of flavour, vine condition, sugar/pH/TA and intuition. We pick across a spectrum of ripeness levels for complexity. Every block is picked and vinified separately for maximum blending options.
Swards of rye and clover have been planted to help prevent soil compaction and to assist in fixing nitrogen. The vines are all trellised using Vertical Shoot Position (VSP), and are spur-pruned with the exception of a couple of older blocks of Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc that are cane pruned.
Spur-pruning helps to ensure that the spur spacing results in the correct shoot spacing in the canopy, which in turn leads to well-exposed leaves and fruit. This results in us obtaining the optimum balance between leaves, canes and bunches.
Suckfizzle Vineyard
The Suckfizzle vineyard is divided into two blocks – the ‘old block’ planted in 1988 which has a minor northly aspect and the ‘young block’ in 1998, which faces slightly to the south. The meso-climate here is most unusual. The vineyard has the Indian Ocean to the west, the Southern Ocean to the south and the Blackwood River inlet to the east. It is also sheltered to the North East by the Leeuwin Naturalist Ridge. The vines come out of dormancy here quicker as the soil warms up faster due to the extreme maritime influences. The vineyard is low (4-11m above sea level) and does not suffer extremes of temperature. Cabernet Sauvignon will ripen here up to 10 days earlier than in Wilyabrup to the North, which is not what you would expect given the higher incidence of cloud cover in the south. The soils are fertile and mainly red / brown loam, and a creek runs through the middle of the site. The rows have a north south orientation and the vines are on a single cordon wire with VSP trellising. Harvesting is done by hand as is pruning. There is minimal irrigation and the crops are fruit thinned, yielding 3-4 tonnes / Ha – a truly distinguished site.
Winemaking
Our approach to winemaking is based upon respect for our vineyards, the wines themselves, and our customers. We use a number of techniques that are worthy of further explanation which are as follows:-
Bâttonage: The French term for lees stirring. We do this firstly to help draw out astringent compounds and pigments (in white wines), secondly and most importantly to scavenge for dissolved oxygen (thus keeping the wine bright) and lastly to impart a creamy texture to the wine and an improved mouthfeel. Bâttonage assists with the integration of oak, MLF, barrel ferment and fruit, and gives us palate texture. We employ bâttonage with our Suckfizzle Sauvignon Blanc Semillon, Stella Bella and Serie Luminosa Chardonnay, Stella Bella Viognier, Stella Bella Sauvignon Blanc, and Stella Bella Semillon Sauvignon Blanc. Bâttonage is usually done (but not always) in conjunction with barrel fermentation and contributes richness, softness and better oak integration. Bâttonage is more frequent with the Chardonnays and Viognier. Not much really happens with the Stella Bella Semillon Sauvignon Blanc or Sauvignon Blanc (as they are not in barrel long enough), but it certainly does on the Suckfizzle Sauvignon Blanc Semillon, quite a lot early on in its barrel residence, but tailing off over the year. The amount of bâttonage depends on the year – cooler years get more to increase the mouthfeel, and the hotter years get less, as the wines already tend to have a fuller mouthfeel.
Barrel Fermentation: A technique that is practiced to impart a silky mouthfeel and complexity to the wines. It is not done to add extra oak flavour (the yeasts used to initiate the fermentation can actually bind to oak flavour components and are removed as lees). It can give some very attractive aromatic characters reminiscent of peach fuzz, or a fruity/nutty combination. It also adds some structure and definition to the richness and power of these white wines. This is essential in retaining balance. One fifth of the Stella Bella Semillon Sauvignon Blanc and Stella Bella Sauvignon Blanc is barrel fermented. The Stella Bella Chardonnays, Stella Bella Viognier, and Suckfizzle Sauvignon Blanc are all 100% barrel fermented.
Malo-lactic fermentation (MLF): The conversion of malic acid, a hard green acid present in grape must, into lactic acid, a much softer acidity found in dairy products, through bacterial activity which results in a rounder softer mouthfeel and also assists with the perceived length of flavour in the wine. It also adds a slipperiness and helps integrate flavours. When done in barrel MLF helps the oak and fruit components of the wine meld together more seamlessly. The process makes the wine more stable and can also result in the formation of diacetyl, which adds complexity and imparts a pleasant buttery character. Our Chardonnays go through 100% MLF, and our reds go through MLF in tank or in barrel prior to barrel maturation.
Oak: The barrels that we use for our white wines are generally not subsequently used for reds (this is slightly unusual). Most producers use white barrels for 1-2 years, and then store red in them for another 2 or 3. We favour the Bordeaux barrique (a barrel that holds 225 litres – the Burgundian equivalent is called a pièce Bourguignonne and that holds 228 litres). We do have a few 228 litres barrels, as some smaller coopers don’t give you the option. For our Stella Bella wines we use older oak predominantly, favouring French barriques for their tighter grain and more subtle flavours. We do use a little American oak for our Stella Bella Shiraz as the low oak tannins and spicy/vanilla lift marry well with Margaret River Shiraz. American oak is in fact a different oak species (Quercus alba) to French and has a more open cell structure and a greater proportion of oak lactones which give warm vanillin and coconut flavours. French oak (Quercus petraea) has tighter grain, higher oak tannins, and lower aromatics and imparts a more subtle seasoning. We also use European oak which is also known as Common Oak (Quercus robur) which is also tight grained, with low aromatics and medium tannin – also good for Shiraz, Tempranillo and our Sangiovese Cabernet blend. We use about a dozen different coopers and toast levels, so that each barrel is tailored to the style of each wine it is bought for.
James Halliday Australian Wine Companion
This enormously successful privately owned winemaking business produces wines of true regional expression, with fruit sourced from the central and southern parts of Margaret River. The company operates almost 90ha of vineyard and has its own winery in Karridale. Serie Luminosa Cabernet Sauvignon is an outstanding flagship for Stella Bella. Exports of Stella Bella, Suckfizzle and Skuttlebutt labels to the UK, the US and other major markets.
http://www.winecompanion.com.au/wineries/western-australia/margaret-river/stella-bella-wines