This wine is an exercise in freestyle winemaking. After discovering Aleatico (a type of red Muscat) in the Swan a few years back, the aim was to produce a Beaujolais style light red via carbonic maceration. The variety presents some challenges in the winery, as the tightly packed bunches seem to have a range of ripeness for individual berries, ranging from very ripe, to somewhat ripe. Colour extraction is on the low side, as the skins are very rich in the anthocyanin Malvin, resulting in a deep red hue, rather than the purple / black of a Shiraz.,
Fermentation was allowed to finish in French oak puncheons. The heady perfume of the wine is reminiscent of a middle eastern market, but quickly saturates the senses, so that the wines other attributes are not dominated. The wine also has some Italianate tannins in the vein of Sangiovese or Nebbiolo, which elevate ‘Frisson’ to more than a novelty wine. Frisson (French for shiver), is actually a medical term for the tingling skin sensation when you hear an epic piece of music….
