Named after a cult band, this new enterprise is in the Joy business
The lifelong punk music fans have called the project “Decades”, ostensibly after the Joy Division song; in reality it means much more.
The wines we drink find their way to our glasses through myriad pathways. The two on the page here, released this week, exist because a wannabe brewer sat next to a circus school drop-out on the first day of winemaking school. Brad Rogers was looking at the future through beer googles; unable to find a suitable degree in brewing, he’d arrived at Roseworthy Agricultural College thinking its renowned oenology degree might at least give him a grounding in fermentation techniques. Steve Flamsteed was a chef who had his sights on training at a circus school in France, but in the meantime he’d found himself working at a winery in Beaujolais, doing the jobs visiting Australian winemaker Dean Hewitson didn’t want. Something clicked, and Hewitson convinced Flamsteed to enrol in Roseworthy, his alma mater. So Flamsteed put his circus school plans on hold, and headed home.
That first day at Roseworthy set in motion two of the most significant booze careers of the past 30 years. Rogers made wine and fulfilled his beery dreams, brewing Fiji Bitter before running Matilda Bay and becoming a founder of Stone & Wood. Flamsteed made cheese and become a highly regarded winemaker at Giant Steps. The two remained friends, and wistfully spoke of some day doing something together. After Stone & Wood was sold to Lion Nathan, and Flamsteed moved on after many years at Giant Steps, that day came.
Flamsteed’s new winemaking consultancy has seen him spend a lot of time in Tasmania. When a vineyard in the Coal River Valley came up, he knew who to call. The first wines from the original 3ha of pinot noir and chardonnay were produced in 2023, another 4ha was planted in 2024, and a further 4ha planting commenced last week. The lifelong punk music fans have called the project “Decades”, ostensibly after the Joy Division song; in reality it means much more. It signifies disparate threads pulled through time that are tied up here. If there’s any justice in this world, the measure of this project’s lifespan too.
2023 DECADES CHARDONNAY
$80
Steve Flamsteed has played a major role in the refinement of Australian chardonnay over the past 20 years and all that intuitive understanding pays off here. This is exquisitely uncluttered, a wine of confident purity that allows a great site to speak without shouting. White flowers, nectarines and grapefruit pith. A gentle suggestion of nougat and wild honey smoothing out its core, a crystalline and propulsive acidity elongating and substantiating its finish.
13% alcohol, 96 points
2023 DECADES PINOT NOIR
$80
This is a wine of whispered power, finely etched detail and sublimely supple texture. Black cherries and dried strawberries, a rippling seam of baking spices, a beguiling bass line of sweet earthiness. It’s the sinewy athleticism that really impresses here; the wine delivers plenty without ever getting paunchy. It’s alert, energetic and rolls across the palate with effortless momentum. This is not Joy Division, but Joy Multiplied.
13% alcohol, 96 points