‘They understand custodianship requires the ability to look backwards and forwards at once’
This winer is time capsule and an innovation hub, a living museum and an evolving wine business.
A good glass of brandy has the power to make us do wondrous things. A great glass of brandy can shape a family’s fortunes for a century. “Here, Purbrick, this might interest you,” said a friend of the British MP Reginald Purbrick as he handed him a glass of golden spirit from Chateau Tahbilk in distant Australia. It interested him enough to buy the sprawling property established in 1860 on the twisting banks of the Goulburn River, sight unseen, in 1925. Reginald – politician, sportsman, entrepreneur and drinking buddy of Winston Churchill – set foot on the property twice.
It was his son Eric who came to Australia, put a Cambridge law degree in his back pocket and got to work turning Tahbilk into a leader of Australian wine’s transition from a fortified industry to one built on dry table wines.
Eric Purbrick is recognised as a hugely important figure in Australia’s winemaking history, and last week, while tasting several wines he made in the early 1960s, with his grandchildren and their kids beside me, I was struck by the magnitude of the contribution of this family. Tahbilk is both a time capsule and an innovation hub, a living museum and an evolving wine business that understands custodianship of special places requires the ability to look backwards and forwards at once.
Tasting wines from the property across a timespan from the early 1960s through to the current decade is an exercise in following an easily found thread. There is a connection through all of them. From the age-worthy marsannes that have always been a signature (Tahbilk is the world’s single largest producer of the Rhône Valley variety) to the subtle, soulful reds made from cabernet and shiraz, there is a strong sense of place. Next year the Purbrick family marks a century of ownership. Have a brandy or two to celebrate that.
TAHBILK ‘1927 VINES’ MARSANNE 2016
$45
Fruit from old vines is picked early, all acid and angles, fermented without fuss and given time to bloom in the bottle before release. It’s a thing of beauty, a wine that has shed its lean neutrality and emerged fragrant and complex. Classic honeysuckle blossom characters, wild honey, preserved lemon and beeswax. Will live for decades, too. 10.6% alcohol, 95 points
TAHBILK ‘CENTENARY RELEASE’ RIESLING 2017
$36
Somewhat overshadowed by the attention on marsanne, this wine, commemorating 100 years of family ownership, deserves greater acclaim. Elements of lime marmalade and dried jasmine join a burst of fresh citrus on the nose, and the wine’s gentle acid line guides it to a long, graceful finish. 12% alcohol, 93 points
TAHBILK ‘ERIC STEVENS PURBRICK’ SHIRAZ 2017
$73
Made with the best shiraz fruit from across the estate to honour the contribution of Eric Purbrick. A wine of refined richness: red and blue fruit, subtle spice and rich leather, a lick of anise too. Generosity without excess, a gentle earthiness and a calmly expansive wave of dusty tannins. 14.5% alcohol, 94 points