WITH TONY LOVE
The world of alternative grape varieties continues to grow as if Stephen Hawking has done a universe-expanding physics equation on the genre.
The latest to attract attention is the rare-in-Oz southern Corsican red variety sciacarello, courtesy of maverick Clare Valley label Koerner.
The best I can do for a pronunciation guide is “shack-a-rello”. A synonym is mammolo, the name for the same grape used in Tuscany, where some experts have suggested it originated.
You’ll see that connection in three wines from the partnership of brothers Damon and Jono Koerner, who source their fruit from the southern end of the Clare Valley.
Four years ago they came upon a small acre of sciacarello in the Vivian vineyard of Rob Tiver, where they were sourcing another Italian (Tuscan) native sangiovese.
The native Corsican grapes had come from mother-vine cuttings out of a nursery in Western Australia, and we can now taste three new Aussie reds that tick all the boxes of modern styling.
By their own description, the Koerner wines are all about freshness, brightness, primary fruit expression and minimal intervention in delivering those elements in the glass.
From the evidence so far, sciacarello does all that with alacrity.
“It’s a pretty interesting grape and really versatile,” says Damon. “The berries are big, with light-coloured skin, they’re pretty drought-resistant, they throw a good crop, are really aromatic with spice and they have amazing nat natural acidity.”
Starting with the lightest, the Koerner Tiver 2017 Rose ($2 ($27) is a 70-per-cent san sangiovese/30-per-cent s sciacarello blend, named after viticulturist and vineyard owner Rob Tiver. It’s in the pale brown-onion skin to light Aperol colour range, has a touch of orange flesh and skin in its nose, even a whiff of mortadella, with a zippy tang on the tongue and lingering peppery spice.
Another blend with sangiovese, se, as well as s grenache e and d malbec, lb is i the h Koerner La Corse 2017 ($30), this time sciacarello making up 25 per er cent. Again its lighter colour r pre-empts a gorgeously fresh drinking feel.
For the clearest view of the variety in this brighter style, the Koerner 2017 Mammolo ($40) is such a light red it’s almost a rose crossover, with an orange to plum-like profile. Koerner Wines are regularly on the wine list at Black Cow Bistro at Launceston and Kingston Beach’s Robbie Brown’s.