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Latest News From Smidge Wines

 

Team Smidge
 
26 October 2021 | Team Smidge

Matt Decanted? Watch out for Matt's latest podcast - Coming soon

In a second new announcement in as many weeks Smidge Wines founder and winemaker Matt Wenk will be hosting and publishing a new curious and interesting Podcast Series – Matt Decanted. Featuring a number of industry icons, winemakers and lovers of food & flavour Matt and his guests talk about all things including wine, where their love of the industry started and the journey there  (& much more!).

In his first series ‘on tour’ Matt has toured the state from cellar doors to small goods chatting to South Australian champions such as Corrina Wright, Sam Scott & Andy Coppard as they share stories and the microphone. Watch out the first podcast is due to be published in early November.

Time Posted: 26/10/2021 at 1:04 PM Permalink to Matt Decanted? Watch out for Matt's latest podcast - Coming soon Permalink
Team Smidge
 
4 October 2021 | Team Smidge

Sneak Peak into Updated Houdini Range

Matt Wenk, Smidge Wines founder and winemaker offers a sneak peak into the new Houdini range.

Today, Matt Wenk, Smidge Wines founder and winemaker provided a sneak peak into a refreshed wine label for is acclaimed and popular Houdini Range.

“Houdini is one of our original brands and has a firm place in our heart – modernising our original label was never going to be quick or easy ” says Matt. “Our first release was a creatively named ‘2006 Red Wine’ which was actually our first Shiraz Zinfandel. Much has happened since then, with the range expanding regions, varieties and styles – lead by the popular McLaren Vale Shiraz and Cabernet, a McLaren Vale Fiano, Adelaide Hills Sauvignon Blanc and Adelaide Hills Rose.

The journey for refreshing the label has not been an simple one, with more that 6 different attempts over recent years for an update. So what made this one different? Matt says he and wife Trish picked this design as it carefully balanced the heritage of the label with a modern twist.

 

Time Posted: 04/10/2021 at 4:15 PM Permalink to Sneak Peak into Updated Houdini Range Permalink
Team Smidge
 
20 September 2021 | Team Smidge

Day in the life - Behind the Scenes

For something different, this week we sit down with the ‘other’ half of Smidge Wines – co founder and GM Trish to talk about what life is like behind the scenes at a small passionately Boutique Winery.

To kick things off we ask Trish what it’s like living and working with Husband and Winemaking legend Matt Wenk? “busy” she says with a smile.  Matt has a relentless work ethic and near enough is never good enough.  Sadly for me that doesn’t extend to his sock drawer.

“I think being involved in the industry for 16 years now I am a lot more understanding of the demands and realities of the commitment it takes to make truly great wine.”

What is Matt’s worst habit? ‘That one is easy -calling me when he’s already ½ an hour late to tell me he’s going to be late. It drives me crazy.

Is being in the wine industry and having your own company are romantic as it sounds? Yes & No 😊 With a back ground in Corporate IT if I was ever going to return to my primary production roots the order of wine, from vineyards to bottling would be it. There is something very satisfying creating something tangible which can provide joy and be shared among someone’s best friends on a favourite occasion.  The industry is collaborative in a way that still inspires me (very different to IT), and there is something mesmerizing about sitting out on the deck gazing across a vineyard on a summer afternoon.

There is a flipside of course which can be the uncertainty of seasons and weather or unexpected market changes – but even these situations and challenges lead to something new and exciting that would otherwise remain undiscovered.

Time Posted: 20/09/2021 at 8:25 PM Permalink to Day in the life - Behind the Scenes Permalink
Team Smidge
 
23 August 2021 | Team Smidge

Pedra Branca - Muse or Surf Break?

As a keen surfer it doesn't take much to persuade Matt to watch a documentary on big wave surfing and the minute he saw the break at Pedra Branca some 25km off the coast of Tasmania in the Southern Ocean the inspiration for our project series was born.

In between breathtaking images of big wave riders taming an impossible beast was a story of spectacular, unbridled forces of nature, seen at the rocky outcrop and the unique environment that has been created.

Taking the inspiration from the mystery and power of the location itself, our project series takes what Mother Nature delivers from fruit that is so pure that all of the wines are made with minimal intervention and proceed with wild fermentation.*

Our philosophy for these  ultra small batch 'project' wines that are not produced at any commercial level. They are wines that push the boundaries of what is possible with alternative varietals grown in South Australia, or alternative winemaking processes using well-known varietals such as Sauvignon blanc or Grenache. We work to express the rawness and beauty of mother nature that is delivered vintage to vintage and to see what is possible.
 
You will notice a nod to the topography of the Pedra Branca (meaning white rock) on our label with its name printed in the shape of the main rocky tower called Eddystone Rock.

 

Time Posted: 23/08/2021 at 1:18 PM Permalink to Pedra Branca - Muse or Surf Break? Permalink
Team Smidge
 
18 August 2021 | Team Smidge

2021 Winter in the Vineyard - A snapshot from McLaren Vale

With the flurry of vintage over, the cool of winter is a time to slow down, catch up and regroup. We take the opportunity to sit down with Smidge Founder and Winemaker Matt Wenk at the cellar door to catch up with his take on what this means in the vineyard and for the season ahead.

As Matt points to the vineyards outside he tell us "Our vines in McLaren Vale have been dormant for a number of weeks and the task of pruning off last season’s growth in order to shape the vine in readiness for another growing season, is well underway".

While I've never really thought about it & it now seems obvious, he goes on "Pruning is a vineyard activity of solitude. In many ways this is not a downside, although very much a positive. Each vine requires evaluation and to prune well, one needs to focus on attention to detail, ensuring correct bud numbers, shape and spacing"

As our conversation continues Matt comments get a little more t move towards what is next in store "Throughout the growing season, a vine requires soil moisture to help in photosynthesis, the process where basically, solar energy helps convert carbon dioxide into carbohydrate (distributed to the fruit and wood tissue) and oxygen. Once the fruit is picked, this process continues, and these carbohydrates are translocated to the wood tissue of the vines. If irrigation is available, it is often applied to a vineyard post-harvest, especially if the latter part of the growing season has been dry. This irrigation provides the soil moisture for the photosynthesis and subsequent carbohydrate production that is then stored in the vine before dormancy, in readiness for the energy required for budburst and early growth stages of the following growing season.

Over recent years the total rainfall through winter to early spring has been a bit up and down, whereas so far this year in Willunga where the estate vineyard is, our annual rainfall to the end of July is well over 400mm, compared to the average to the same time of 295mm. The soil profile is full, which will help set up the vineyards for a great start to the coming growing season.

Time Posted: 18/08/2021 at 2:35 PM Permalink to 2021  Winter in the Vineyard -  A snapshot from McLaren Vale Permalink
Team Smidge
 
9 August 2021 | Team Smidge

Perfume Etiquette? Yes, it’s a thing!

Imagine biting into a habanero chilli before being asked to appreciate a delicate Michelin star worthy masterpiece, or to accurately describe a piece of art after immediately removing a blindfold?

In the same way you may temporarily lose the will to live after biting into the world's hottest chilli, or you reflexively squint and recoil from bright light after emerging from darkness, our senses and responses are impacted. Basically, this changes how we interpret information that is normally and reliably delivered to us via our senses.

Our noses are no different. Any strong scent will completely change how we smell and subsequently taste and appreciate a wine or nearly anything for that matter. (Do you remember being blindfolded with a peg on your nose tasting pieces of apple and onion as a kid?)

Those that live with Smidge Winemaker Matt Wenk think he can be a little extreme in the lengths He’ll go to protect his sense of smell when tasting. Matt’s wife & Smidge partner confirms “dinner won't be cooked, coffee won't be brewed - even starting the fire is a no go zone. And don’t get him started on scented candles or diffusers – both of which are much loved in the house – just not by Matt when it is time to taste”.

Matt goes on to add “there is an unspoken (or maybe it should be spoken) rule regarding perfume or scent (this rule does not apply to deodorant and the alternative can be just as damaging!)  when going to a tasting, masterclass or wine dinner. It’s the classic less is more – the less ‘other smells’ exist, allow more ‘wine smells’ to shine through.

Can this conversation be awkward going to an event with someone? Matt adds “Put it this way, I’ve known my wife since I was 16 and she can tell you the day I asked her not to wear perfume to a wine tasting”.

 

Image: Photo 47367956 © Pmakin | Dreamstime.com

Time Posted: 09/08/2021 at 2:16 PM Permalink to Perfume Etiquette? Yes, it’s a thing! Permalink
Team Smidge
 
26 July 2021 | Team Smidge

Akeringa - First Flagship Cabernet from Smidge Wines

This is the extension of the trial that started with the 2017 Cabernet. To select a parcel of Cabernet from the estate block, put it into 100% new French oak and see how far we can push it.

The vineyard in Willunga was attached to a small winery that shut down many years ago, which was called Akeringa. The sheds have been used as a mechanics workshop since, although you can see where the winery drains have been filled in with concrete. When I was the winemaker at Two Hands Wines, a large portion of the Cabernet was sold to them and over a number of years some of the fruit ended up as the base for the Aphrodite Cabernet sauvignon and so I have always known what the block was capable of. Hence, I have being quietly trialling a few things over the years and now here is the birth of the Akeringa Cabernet sauvignon.

No fancy winemaking tricks here. This parcel was made in the same way as the 2018 La Grenouille description, except that the chosen parcel went to 100% new extra tight Cadus Hogsheads.

To access a pre-release allocation please click here.

 

 

Time Posted: 26/07/2021 at 10:14 AM Permalink to Akeringa - First Flagship Cabernet from Smidge Wines Permalink
Matt Wenk
 
22 June 2021 | Matt Wenk

What are your Cellar Rules?

As a winemaker, and long before the Smidge brand was a reality, some household rules needed to be crafted around our cellar that avoided any unnecessary…let's say "surprises". While most of the wine in the house is consumed with family and friends – there are vintage hours, travelling, and wine dinners when I was not around to chat about a food and wine match, or if a particular bottle was perhaps best left unopened.

Equally on a wintery afternoon long before we were married (& before smart phones and google were a thing) at my now parents-in-law’s farm – my wife & her sister opened an old, and what they considered a somewhat unimpressively labelled red wine to sip over a game of cards in front of a fire.  Put it this way, to date they’ve still not been able to replace that bottle – at least both will attest it was delicious!

With that memory indelibly etched in their history we decided household guidelines might be useful. Now we both consider our cellar marital property and what is mine is hers and vice versa - however every now and again there is a professional prerequisite for certain bottles not to be opened on a whim or at least so I could taste it.

We discussed having a rack that was a "free for all", anything in it could be taken, opened, cooked with, we talked about knowing vertical sets, specific vintages, or collected wines that maybe should not be in the racks of first reach. We discussed further study – not my best suggestion.

We decided these were impractical and would lead to nothing being taken from our cellar for 6 months a year. While our cellar is modest – like all cellars – it is at it’s best when it is used – that means a bi directional flow – as many wines that go in should also go out!

 So we ended up with a simple 2 bottle rule – if there are 2 bottles or more of a particular wine, then either party can take whatever they wanted. While the system is not perfect it has worked well for the last upteen years. There is one exception that I can remember – a 6 pack of Roberto Voerzio Barolo that over the course of a long vintage became 1 bottle. This taught me 1) the system worked – there was at least 1 bottle left, 2) I learnt that Trish has a good palate and knows a good wine and 3)she learnt to google the cost per bottle before depleting the 6 pack (almost) in entirety!

No doubt as our children get older and begin to show an interest in wine, I am sure this rule will need some adjusting – or maybe we just need a lock!

Time Posted: 22/06/2021 at 8:45 PM Permalink to What are your Cellar Rules? Permalink
Matt Wenk
 
7 June 2021 | Matt Wenk

Questions from the Cellar Door

What do you drink at home?, Do you drink your own wine? – As a winemaker at the Cellar door, or at nearly any social situation I can think of I am almost always asked these questions.  The follow up question is often ‘Do you ever get to enjoy wine – or is always work?’.

The first part of my answer can be jarring – sometimes I don’t drink wine at all! After a day of barrel trials, or tasting I’ll often have a cold beer or sparkling water – to cleanse the palate, refresh, hydrate and reset.

Then there are the nights I’ll bring home a trial blend to try with dinner, or dust off an old vintage to see how it is faring – testing closures, storage and generally how it is developing relative to my expectations of that vintage.

Equally, I love trying the efforts of someone else’s blood, sweat & tears. Both locally & internationally, I enjoy comparing vintages, varieties & styles and see how we compare.  Then there are the times we’ll open a special bottle whether it is a cheeky glass of fizz or something else we’ve collected along the way – it might be for a celebration or just because.

I’m also a fan of trying anything I can get that is a little different no matter where it is from or what variety it is. It’s important to me to understand what is happening and not to restrict my frame of reference to what I make,  and like to drink.

More recently after a visit from a generous mixologist at the cellar door I’ve been playing with some cocktail style drinks using wine (currently Muscat) as a base – it’s early days and I’ve had more misses that hits – but I’m enjoying the challenge – Watch out – there’s more to come here.

And to answer ‘is it always work?’ Absolutely not! How can drinking something delicious with good food and good friends be work? As the saying goes - If you love what you do you’ll never work a day in your life!’.

Time Posted: 07/06/2021 at 12:49 PM Permalink to Questions from the Cellar Door Permalink
Matt Wenk
 
19 May 2021 | Matt Wenk

Are these crystals in my red wine "Diamonds on the Inside"?

Well, in a nutshell, yes. These crystals form from tartaric acid that overtime ‘fall out’ of the wine and are called "tartrates". Their presence does not mean there is something faulty or wrong with the wine – in fact we feel it is quite the opposite.

Briefly, tartaric acid is the predominant natural, harmless acid in grapes and subsequent wine. It plays a vital role in the stability, pH, colour, structure and taste of finished wine.

A part of tartaric acid’s solubility is temperature dependent, as such when a wine is chilled for an extended period, the unstable form of tartaric acid will "crystallise" and precipitate out creating crystal deposits or ‘tartrates’. These tartrates often capture varying levels of colour and tannins in them.

During the aging process in the barrel a portion of the unstable tartrates precipitate out binding to the walls of the barrel. Once emptied, the barrels are steamed and /or washed to remove the tartrates and lees, although some remain dissolved in the wine and may precipitate out later in the bottle over time forming what often is referred to as a "crust".

So why do not all red wines have these crystals? Well some may be too ‘young’ and not enough time has elapsed for the crystals to form, or the conditions have not been conducive, or maybe the wine has minimal unstable tartaric acid remaining at the time of bottling due to the variety or season. Alternatively, some wineries may, for aesthetics, decide to remove all crystals through a process known as cold stabilisation. Prior to bottling, the wine in question is chilled to a sub zero temperature for a prescribed period to force the unstable tartrates to precipitate.

What about Smidge Wines? As a specialist winery, handcrafting wine of extraordinary quality in small quantities we view the presence of tartrates as showcasing our winemaking philosophy in action.

We believe that each intervention and action we make throughout the journey of every wine is done balancing the risk of action against the benefit to quality, flavour & stability. We view that no matter how carefully it can be done, artificially cold stabilising will change pH and acidity, and independent of the number of trials that can be done, it risks having some influence on the balance, structure, hue and flavour of a final wine. Sometimes these changes can be subtle, other times more noticeable.

We prefer to avoid this risk, and allow these interactions to occur naturally in the bottle over a number of years. So to answer the question – yes, we think these crystals are definitely diamonds!

Time Posted: 19/05/2021 at 9:32 PM Permalink to Are these crystals in my red wine Permalink