St Leonards Vineyard Durif 2015
- Textured, savoury
- Rutherglen
This durif is new to the ‘Fo and comes from one of Australia most trusted names. Even if you haven’t heard of St Leonards, you’ll almost certainly know the iconic Rutherglen producer All Saints just down the river, with the two under the same ownership. St Leonards is a beautiful winery on the banks of the Murray and luckily for us, the wine matches the setting.
Profile
This is one hell of a deal if you love durif. It scored 92 points in the latest Halliday Wine Companion, and was described as “rich, ripe and plummy,” a wine that “flows easily and has a feeling of effortless balance overall.” It also picked up a double-gold medal at the Six Nations Wine Challenge this year, awarded to just 10% of every class judged. Medium to full-bodied with berry notes, it’s just a top example of Rutherglen durif and well worth your time.
It’s cool, we get it, you want to know absolutely everything about this wine. Well here you go, go nuts.
Specs
- Region
- Rutherglen
- Vintage
- 2015
- Cellaring
- 2030
- Preservatives
- Sulphites
- Alcohol by Vol.
- 14.8%
- Closure
- Screwcap
- Bottle Vol
- 750mL
- Blend Info
- 100% Durif
- Serving Temp.
- 17°C
Region
Rutherglen
Established in the 1850s, Rutherglen is celebrated as one of Australia's oldest wine regions. Originally 'founded' by Lindsay Brown, who planted his four acre vineyard in the west of Rutherglen, today the region is home to over 20 wineries - from the legendary, to the family owned-and-operated to young boutiques. Sitting neatly in the North East of Victoria, this iconic region is bordered by the Victorian Alps and the Murray river to the north. Famously known for its warm wine-growing conditions - its terroir makes it ideal for growing Mediterranean varietals such as Viognier, Marsanne, Roussanne, Grenache, Mourvedre, to Sangiovese and Fiano, to local favourites Durif and Muscat.
The rules are there ain’t no rules, but here are some foods we think will work pretty well with this wine...
Goes with
Red wine, juniper and orange kangaroo pot roast
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 800g - 1 kg garlic & herb marinated kangaroo mini roasts
- 1 bunch baby carrots, peeled
- 4 small parsnips, peeled and halved
- 2 celery sticks, chopped into 1cm chunks
- 1 large onion, quartered and chopped
- 2 clove garlic, crushed
- 1 red chilli, finely sliced into rounds
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- 250ml red wine
- juniper berries
- 60 ml orange juice
- 1 tsp finely grated orange zest
- 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
- 1 tbsp fresh rosemary leaves
- 2 cups water
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- In a large heavy-based flameproof saucepan heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over a medium-high heat, place kangaroo mini roasts in pan and cook until browned all over, then set aside.
- Add another tablespoon of oil, place carrots, parsnips and celery in batches into the pan and brown for about 5 minutes each, then set aside.
- Heat remaining oil, add onion to pan over a low heat, cover with a lid and allow to soften for 5 minutes.
- Add garlic and chilli and cook over a medium heat, stirring constantly for 2-3 minutes.
- Add flour, stirring to combine and cook for a further 2 minutes. Pour in the wine and bring to the boil for 2 minutes to cook off the alcohol.
- Add the juniper berries, juice, zest, thyme and rosemary. Then return the vegetables and kangaroo to the pan and add the water.
- Bring to the boil, cover, then reduce heat to very low and cook for 2 hours or until the meat is tender.
- Serve kangaroo with a sweet potato mash.