The website therealreview.com published this article by Toni Paterson in its Wine Spotlight section on 4 February 2019:
“TOP AUSTRALIAN FIZZ, by Toni Paterson
DAOSA Natural Réserve is a stunning Australian fizz with impressive savouriness and complexity.
It is a blend of 85% pinot noir and 15% chardonnay with the grapes grown in the Piccadilly Valley, in South Australia’s Adelaide Hills.
The chardonnay grapes were sourced from the Bizot Vineyard, which was originally planted by Petaluma in the mid-1990s. The pinot noir comes from the Summertown Vineyard, which was planted by Charles ‘Chilly’ Hargrave in 1987.
It is the high-quality fruit from these established vineyards that form the basis of this stunning wine. The hand-harvested pinot noir grapes were whole bunch pressed, with only the first 550 litres of juice per tonne retained. After the primary fermentation, the base wine underwent malolactic fermentation.
Prior to tirage, the pinot noir portion was blended with a 2015 chardonnay component which was barrel aged for 18-months in old oak without sulfur.
The wine was tiraged in 2016 and spent 18 months ageing on lees after the secondary fermentation. Following disgorgement, the wine received a refreshingly low dosage of 7.5g/L.
DAOSA Natural Réserve 2016 tirage, is a captivating wine with impressive fruit depth, a fine and tight bead, and gentle complexity. Only 450 six-bottle cases were made, and wine retails for AUD $40.”
