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MAC FORBES

YARRA VALLEY, VICTORIA

Four and a Half Stars - Excellent winery
James Halliday 2011 Australian Wine Companion.

What The critics are saying:

“Mac Forbes is one of the young guns of the Yarra Valley; he was winemaker at Mount Mary for several years before heading to Europe, returning in time for the ’05 vintage.” James Halliday, The Australian

“[Mac Forbes] is a young leader of the movement toward bright, fresh Yarra wines from cool sites.” ‘2010 Wineries to Watch’, Wine & Spirits Magazine

“Mac Forbes, good dude and modern day Bourke and Wills for the ‘elusive sites’, has done much for sexing up the Yarra Valley region’s ability to do great things with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. He fiddles, he fossicks, he sources, he has nice hair. Who doesn’t like nice hair?  Meanwhile, the wine itself is notable for finding that tenuous balance between herbal/cool climate influence and the pure, ripe, expressive fruit component.” Mike Bennie, The Wine Front, March 2011
 
Mac is simply a perfect fit for Bibendum because of the quality and style of wines he produces and because we share very similar philosophies and attitudes to wine in general. What we love about Mac most is that he is obsessed with growing wines that strongly reflect the personality of his vineyards. Today Mac works with his dedicated team and with nine small vineyards in the Yarra Valley and Strathbogie Ranges. They encourage life in their soils and seek to pick balanced fruit so that manipulation in the winery is rarely (ideally never) required. The winemaking is ‘hands off’ – it’s all about letting the fruit shine through. Mac is also one of the leading figures in the search for Australian sub-regionality (or terroir)..

Of course, an ever increasing number of Australian winemakers are taking a ‘terroirist’ approach to their vines. They’re bottling wines from single patches of vines rather than blending vineyards or regions. Mac Forbes has emerged as one of the chief protagonists in the move towards sub-regionality and site specific wines by using his own back yard – the Yarra Valley. With six single-site Pinots from Yarra villages in 2010 - Dixons Creek, Yarra Glen, Coldstream, Gruyere, Woori Yallock and Yarra Junction - Mac is attempting to guide the personalities of each of his vineyards into our glass. We think he’s done a brilliant job. Most significantly, Mac’s wines are fresh, pure and a pleasure to drink.


Mac’s broad international experience has clearly informed the philosophies above. He has done stints in France (mainly Burgundy), Italy, Portugal, Austria and of course Australia where he was winemaker for Mount Mary.  His main influences have been the late John Middleton (Mount Mary), Dirk Niepoort (Niepoort wines, Portugal) and what he has learned through his consultancy work with some 30 Austrian producers (2004-2008 in Carnuntum). These experiences have helped Mac define his own ‘Euro inspired’ style and discover philosophies and methods that he could translate to the Australian landscape. To add to his achievements, Mac was a finalist in 2011 for the Gourmet Traveller Winemaker of the Year Competition.


THE YARRA VALLEY RANGE
All the Macforbes Pinots are made in a similar fashion. Everything is done by hand from vineyard to bottle (as with all MF wines), with no ‘tricking up’. Hand plunging, foot stomping with fermention in small open fermenters. No added tannin, and only rarely is yeast or acid addition required. The wines rest in barrel on lees without racking until bottling; unfined and unfiltered.

Mac’s philosophy in the winery is honestly blunt; the hard work has been done in the vineyards and all that’s left is to “...look after the detail, keep it simple and respect the fruit”. As a whole Mac’s Pinots are lithe, fresh and pure-fruited. Use of oak is deft and in accordance with the vintage, always tucked away in a supporting role to the fruit. The Chardonnays are nervy and vibrant. It’s tempting to call them Euro-styled, however there is no brittleness that can be associated with producers trying to mimic this style from Aussie soil. Instead the fresh acidities are cushioned by vivacious fruit and textural complexities. The four whites below are refined, elegant, tightly wound and citrusy. They are truly exciting additions to the ‘new school’ of Australian Chardonnay.

Mac Forbes

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Result pages: 123Next page
Mac Forbes Riesling RS19 2011 More details Review this wine
Region:
Strathbogie Ranges
Producer:
Mac Forbes
Mac Forbes Riesling RS19 2011
Floral, green apple, perfumed - almost lavender. Sharp focus, gentle sweetness but spicy acidity and something else - another flavour - one that's a bit savoury and cheesy. Subtly dilute, but in a... read more
Product Code: 9572-750
Mac Forbes Gruner Veltliner 2009 More details Review this wine
Region:
Austria
Producer:
Mac Forbes
Mac Forbes Gruner Veltliner 2009
Mac's Grüner is one of the most delicious examples we have tasted. Blended in two parts, one barrel fermented in large old oak, the other a wild ferment in tank at 11 degrees, the result is a... read more
Product Code: 8981-750
Mac Forbes Gruner Veltliner 2010 More details Review this wine
Region:
Austria
Producer:
Mac Forbes
Mac Forbes Gruner Veltliner 2010
This just vanished last year. Blended in two parts; one part barrel fermented in large old oak, the other a wild ferment in tank at 11 degrees, the result is a bright and personality rich wine with... read more
Product Code: 9720-750
Mac Forbes Tasmanian RS 20 Riesling 2010 More details Review this wine
Region:
Tasmania
Producer:
Mac Forbes
Mac Forbes Tasmanian RS 20 Riesling 2010
The Riesling is back! Sadly the Strathbogie Riesling vineyard that Mac works with was wiped out in 2010 but he thankfully found an interesting parcel of Tasmanian Riesling to play with. The result... read more
Product Code: 8668-750
Mac Forbes Yarra Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 More details Review this wine
Region:
Yarra Valley
Producer:
Mac Forbes
Mac Forbes Yarra Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2008
A cabernet from the ever ascetic Mac Forbes.
"Blackcurrant, redcurrant, rolling tobacco, mint, subtle chocolate, vanilla and pencil oak - smells good. It's light to middle weight with crisp... read more
Product Code: 8845-750
Mac Forbes Yarra Valley Chardonnay 2011 More details Review this wine
Region:
Yarra Valley
Producer:
Mac Forbes
Mac Forbes Yarra Valley Chardonnay 2011
Product Code: 9716-750
Mac Forbes Yarra Valley Pinot Noir 2010 More details Review this wine
Region:
Yarra Valley
Producer:
Mac Forbes
Mac Forbes Yarra Valley Pinot Noir 2010
In 2010 Mac's Yarra Valley Pinot is a blend of fruit from Coldstream, Gruyere and Woori Yallock. A climatically 'uneventful' season resulted in fantastic fruit quality and character as seen across... read more
Product Code: 9568-750
Mac Forbes Blaufrankisch 2009 More details Review this wine
Region:
Austria
Producer:
Mac Forbes
Mac Forbes Blaufrankisch 2009
Mac's Blau is bright, pure and a pleasure to drink. Foot stomped and matured in old wood, the 2009 is probably his best version of this wine. It's lifted and fragrant aromas are brassy and redolent... read more
Product Code: 8982-750
Mac Forbes Blaufrankisch 2010 More details Review this wine
Region:
Austria
Producer:
Mac Forbes
Mac Forbes Blaufrankisch 2010
Blaufränkisch was once evocatively described as being the existentialists' Pinot Noir. We're not quite sure what that means but one thing is clear; you certainly don't have to be a student of Satre... read more
Product Code: 9719-750
Mac Forbes Dixon's Creek Pinot Noir 2010 More details Review this wine
Region:
Yarra Valley
Producer:
Mac Forbes
Mac Forbes Dixon's Creek Pinot Noir 2010
115 dozen made. Located in the north-west of the Yarra Valley, this is Mac's most northerly tended vineyard and has dense, mudstone/clay soils. While the sub-regional conditions are dry and warm,... read more
Product Code: 9441-750
Result pages: 123Next page
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