Get to know McLaren Vale with the tips from these local producers.
Duncan Lloyd (left) with dad Mark
of Coriole.
MARK LLOYD of Coriole Vineyards is respected as godfather of the alternative grape movement. Winner of the Trott Family Trophy at the 2019 McLaren Vale Wine Awards for his visionary planting and championing of myriad grape varieties, he feels gratified these alternatives have grown beyond enthusiastic small companies, such as Coriole. He notes that alternatives now form part of all leading McLaren Vale winery portfolios. “The whole scene is dynamic,” Mark says. “We are not only presenting exceptional wines, but marketing them very smartly as well. It was a fringe movement that now has mainstream attention.” Mark’s enthusiasm to be the first in Australia to plant sangiovese – in 1985 – has paid off handsomely, with Coriole’s outstanding Vita Reserve Sangiovese a flagship of the style here, inspiring many others to plant the variety. Mark agrees that nero d’Avola is another outstanding new performer in the region, although it had a difficult start at Coriole. “We planted on the top of the hill, on bony soils and exposed to strong wind – yet it survived and now produces great fruit,” Mark explains. “We do all this without a handbook to lead us, so there’s quite a lot of trial and error, but it’s part of the excitement of reaching for something new and worthwhile.”
Mark is delighted that such diversity of grape varieties offers contrasting styles that all sit comfortably within the region, and his greatest excitement is for the new white wines. He is particularly impressed with how his winemaker son Duncan is working with fiano. Coriole was the first in Australia to plant this variety almost 20 years ago, and Duncan’s Coriole Rubato (reserve fiano) boldly shows richness and luscious texture from its development in old oak.
Another innovative stroke was being the first in Australia to plant the southern French variety of piquepoul in 2011. “I think we’ve got three outstanding white grapes ideally suited to the region – fiano, vermentino and piquepoul,” Mark says. “It gives us great confidence as a region that we can do all this. Our diversity is our story.”
Corrina Wright, Oliver’s Taranga Vineyards.
Thinking about climate change, we looked to varieties that are more drought-resistant and heat-tolerant, but we also made lifestyle choices, to produce wines that go best with the seafood we catch off our nearby beaches.