Characterful and energetic, this is probably the most distinctive pinot that Brian Croser has drawn from his Foggy Hill Vineyard yet. The best clones in the best part of the site unite in a savoury style, filled with beetroot, Moroccan …
15% of the fruit was placed at the bottom of the fermenting tubs, progressively crushed. Each block was pressed separately, and clonally, then settled and matured on full lees in one-third new barriques for 10 months. A darker note of …
Pinot Noir doesn’t need to taste like Burgundy to be good. This Tapanappa Definitus Pinot Noir 2018 is the example of this.
It’s a Pinot of rippling power. Of tannins and conviction. A Bordeaux drinkers Pinot Noir, if you’re still …
It’s a firm, fragrant, spice-riddled pinot noir with blueberry and macerated cherry notes shot through with aromatic herb notes. In fact it’s quite earthen, almost beetroot-like, with a sweetness to the finish in the context of its dry/earthen style. This …
There are four hectares of pinot noir growing on the Foggy Hill vineyard; this is from a one-hectare strip. It’s planted at a density of 4444 vines/hectare, using clones 115 and 777, all planted on rootstock.
Firm, ripe and convincing. …
Sour cherry and dark fruit profile, touch more of the savoury – almost hedgerow, stem like – than I necessarily recall. For that depth of aromatics, it carries a lightness to itself; silken in its flow across the palate and …
Brian Croser’s Fleurieu Peninsula Pinot has evolved quite a bit over its existence, the style reaching for more delicacy every vintage. It doesn’t always get there, but the trade-off is a wine with no shortage of power. It’s easy to …
For Foggy Hill the 2018 Definitus is quite open for business at a young age, no doubt thanks to the warm and dry vintage. Bright mid cherry in colour, there is a powerful core of dark and red cherry fruits …
Brian Croser’s Fleurieu Peninsula Pinot has evolved quite a bit over its existence, the style reaching for more delicacy every vintage.
It doesn’t always get there, but the trade-off is a wine with no shortage of power. It’s easy to …
It’s a firm, fragrant, spice-riddled pinot noir with blueberry and macerated cherry notes shot through with aromatic herb notes. In fact it’s quite earthen, almost beetroot-like, with a sweetness to the finish in the context of its dry/earthen style. This …
2017 gave Foggy Hill the growing season and vintage it craved for. In terms of varietal character, texture, structure, balance and length, the wine can’t be faulted. It is by some distance the best Foggy Hill Pinot Noir made to …
Foggy Hill is located on the Fleurieu Peninsula, and is one of the coldest places on the Australian mainland. It creates a very unique style of Australian Pinot – particularly savoury, spicy and even meaty wines. The wines are also …
The 2018 Foggy Hill Vineyard “Definitus” Pinot Noir is a blend of Clones 115 and 777 from a strip of vines over the site’s shallowest soils. Winemaking is similar to the rest of the vineyard’s production, and maturation takes place …
More floral and ethereal in character than the sturdier 2018, the 2019 Pinot Noir Foggy Hill Vineyard delivers notes of fresh herbs, black tea, roses, cherries and cranberries. Medium-bodied and silky in texture, it also weighs in with 0.8% alcohol …
Medium to deep ruby colour with purple tints and a complex bouquet of smoky, vegetal, possibly whole-bunch fermented characters, some notes of char-grilled vegetables, all melded with raspberry-like fruit aromas. Hints of humus and Campari. The wine is intense and …
Bright and vibrant ruby colour from core to rim. Black cherry, iodine, smoke and vegetable broth aromatics. Intense from the palate entry, dark cherry fruit shows early then morphs into multiple savoury layers of smoke, meat and undergrowth. Quite mouth-filling, …
I can’t help but think that warmer years are helping Foggy Hill. Not that the wines from cooler years are not delicious, but they are generally quite savoury and need some time to put flesh on their bones. But no …
…Cool site, warm year, as Brian Croser pitches it in the accompanying letter – detailed, and insightful as ever – with the sample.
An expressly aromatic take on Pinot Noir: Chinese five spice, sandalwood, something Plum like, a touch of
An elite microcosm of the Foggy Hill site. The best strip, so to speak. I prefer this to the ’17. More integrated, compact, layered and detailed. The tension, curtailing the ripe and inherently sweet fruit. The oak, tannic extract and judicious whole …
A broad patina of sous-bois, pickled cherry and fecund strawberry, aged judiciously in French oak (30%). Silky, with a gentle rasp of herb-inflected tannins and saline maritime acidity.…
…There are four hectares of pinot noir growing on the Foggy Hill vineyard; this is from a one-hectare strip. It’s planted at a density of 4444 vines/hectare, using clones 115 and 777, all planted on rootstock. It’s light, firm and
…Something akin to a block level wine off the Fleurieu’s Foggy Hill Vineyard. The Definitus strip being a sub-Ridge formed where ferruginuous sandstone comes close to the surface. The strip also marks a delineation between two rows of two Bernard
…This is smoky and savoury, scented with dried herb and dried flowers like the regular Foggy Hill, but with a little more density, flesh and concentration. Very savoury and quite delicious, the finish long and harmonious.
94 points
…Nice depth to the colour. instantly smoky, peaty, charry nose. Cloves and rosemary wrestle with graphite and a charming tease of mulberry fruit. Tannins are chalky. This needs time
90 Points
A rather delightful pinot with simply wonderful, bright raspberries and brambleberries, as well as fresh-pastry notes. The palate has a fresh, light and lithe feel with gently peppery nuances and firm, long, fruit-soaked tannins. Drink or hold.
93 points…
…Does nothing to supress my urge to visit this site. Looking very good this 2017 vintage, even if it warmer than average – not always great for the variety at hand – but the seasonal warmth only tells one aspect,
…2017 was a warmer than average year at Foggy Hill but the wine wasn’t harvested until late March, early April. This is arguably the best Foggy Hill Pinot Noir I’ve seen. It’s fragrant, it’s pretty, it’s well formed and then
A cooler vintage that shows a wealth of brambly forest characters, spiced charcuterie,clean and bright violet-like dried flowers and graphite. The palate is very plush with some deeper nuances and mushroom, too. Refined, fresh, lively and supple brambly cherries as …
A slightly warmer than average vintage. The nose has a bright and fresher floral edge with fresh violets. There is also an edge of brambly forest floor. The palate has a very plush and long, dark cherries. The fine tannins …
A very complex array of dried flowers such as roses and violets. Subtly savory dark cherries and earthy fruits, as well as some graphite, coal smoke and savory, dark and stony nuances. The palate is very nicely wrapped in spicy …
Has the emerging signature of coal smoky savoriness (30% whole bunches) and dried flowers here. Violets and roses with a cooler on average vintage. Mulberries and red cherries with an impressive depth. The palate has the expressive, lively finish, and …
I like the floral violets and roses with charcoal and a sweet array of silky, plush and very even-paced fruit. Ripe red cherries and boysenberries, and plush, ribbon-like tannins. Things are more groomed, fluid and succinct with composed and elegantly …
Serious pinot noir from industry veteran Brian Croser and his team at Tapanappa. The Definitus is made in tiny quantities from fruit grown on a one-hectare strip of the Foggy Hill vineyard on the Fleurieu Peninsula, south of Adelaide. It …
…Out to impress
93/100
It’s a tight and firmish wine with slightly grippy, chalky tannins. Notes of spice and sour cherry.
…This has a lovely red-cherry and cherry-liqueur like bouquet laced with spices and some subtle foresty characters – possibly whole-bunch derived. It’s showing considerable complexity already. The wine is full in the mouth and quite firm, with abundant youthful tannins.
…Love this vineyard’s wines and here is another great reason for you to get on board with them. A deeper coloured pinot reflecting more powerful red fruit flavours than you will discover in many pinots.
Rating 95/100
…The beguilingly perfumed nose, suggestive of dark cherry and dried herbs, is captivating, and shows a whiff of oak. This supple, intense wine is a pleasure to drink, although the fine tannins provide the framework for cellaring. ★★★★☆
A dense and solid pinot with lots of flesh yet toned and muscular with ripe tannins. Lots of ripe fruit, leather and hints of new wood. Flavorful and long. More full-throttle style. Very sexy. Screw cap.
93 points…
…Brian Croser’s Foggy Hill vineyard is on one of the coldest and wettest sites in the state, chosen to nurture a pinot that clearly revels in the climate there. This is exciting, high-toned wine with vibrant varietal aromatics of crushed
…Deep red colour with a tinge of purple and a floral, lifted boquet showing some earthy, minty and forest-floor nuances. Dried flowers. Chewy tannins, a trace of Vegemite from oak and development and (possibly) lees contact. The wine is full-bodied
…A savoury and structured vintage for Foggy Hill true to a slightly warmer vintage, a wine of beetroot character, sour morello cherries and sweet and sour notes, with robust tannins and good persistence. A more rustic season for Foggy Hill.
…After losing control of Petaluma Wines to Lion Nathan (now Lion Co) early this century, founder Brian Croser established Tapanappa Wines, based on existing vineyards in the Piccadilly Valley (Adelaide Hills) and Wrattonbully, near Coonawarra. In 2003, Croser planted a
…“This vineyard is really starting to express its character, and the warmest vintage yet is loaded with personality. It holds itself with persistence and poise, at once fragrant and fruity and simultaneously savoury and structured, with fine, drying tannins reflective
…Low grape yield led to a concentrated, powerful wine with sappy, spicy complexities plus cherry, vanilla and chocolate nuances. Soft, rich and ripe. Superb wine.
95 points
…Post-Petaluma, Brian Croser bought a sheep grazing property planted pinot noir and a distinguished site was born.
…NO WASHED-out, cordial-like colour for this robust pinot noir. Still revealing that lighter red drinking style typical of pinots, but offering bigger fruit flavours with nice spice. Loved it.
94/100
…Stem, soy, sesame – great fragrance, poise and delicacy plus plentiful cranberry crunch. The antithesis of the South Australia expectation!
17 points
…An extremely intense and focused wine; the fruit is a blend of citrus, stone fruit and apple; the barrel ferment inputs and oak maturation have been swallowed by the fruit. Needs several years to relax and
…Let’s first deal with the regional point of difference: Brian Croser planted his pinot vineyards in this constantly coldest and wettest place starting 12 years back. The rewards are showing with stunningly pure aromas in the crushed cherry spectrum, the
Foggy Hill is a site that I yearn to visit. I’ve only taken the Southward drive down the Fleurieu coast the once, but I simply love that coastal drive, the child-like rolling hills that simply form, one into the other. …
Bright mid cherry colour. Sweet and pretty red cherry and raspberry fruit with a touch of new oak and attractive thyme herbal complexity. More fruit forward than previous release in a quite rounded and lush style finishing with spicy earthy …
…All it needs is time…
Once the surprisingly sweet toasty oak integrates here this is going to be superb. It’s easily the biggest boned Tapa Pinot yet, but that weight and volume enhances the appeal. The flesh and swagger underneath
…Arguably the best Tapanappa Pinot Noir to date. The bouquet is complex, with a light touch of oak. The fruit takes in both berries and plums, and the silky palate is as well balanced and focused as it is long.
A trio of reviews from Jancis Robinson
…Tapanappa, Whalebone Vineyard 2009 Wrattonbully, 16.5+
“Mid blackish ruby. Firm and meaty on the nose. Actually it does not taste dominated by Cabernet. Subtle and appetising. Still with tannins in evidence but very
…I have been quite a fan of Brian Croser’s Tapanappa wines, since being introduced to them when I visited him back in 2005. Making fine wine is a long-term project, especially when you are planting new vineyards. It takes the
…This pinot noir has a lot of gravitas with a deep colour and spicy bouquet. It’s slightly oak dominant at first with black cherry emerging in time. It’s dense and persistent with satisfying flavour, backed by a spine of tannins.
…A single vineyard pinot that is now showing glorious vintage sympathies, here everything ripe, spicy and dark fruited from a warm year, its balance and poise mesmerising.
…In 2003 Brian Croser planted three Dijon clones of pinot noir at about 350 metres altitude on the southern Fleurieu Peninsula. Elevation and proximity to the cold Southern Ocean give Croser’s Foggy Hill site a unique microclimate, dramatically cooler than
…From the Fleurieu Peninsula, this is the most savoury and dense of the trio, loaded with aromas of forest floor and smoky fire embers with rhubarb and dark cherry fruit freshened up by a tart, cranberry-like acidity.
93 points
“Just love winemaker Brian Croser and here is yet another winner from him. Best Aussie pinot I have tasted for a long while, worth the extra dollars.”
Rating: 97/100…
…“Pretty strict and sappy, with peppery stalky bits, raspberry verging on framboise (liqueur), mint chocolate and cedar. Light to medium bodied, strawberry and raspberry, clarity of acidity is attractive and shape is excellent. Stalky notes on the nose are a
…Quite fascinating to watch the relatively young Foggy Hill Vineyard reveal its identity via Pinot Noir. There’s already a distinct flavour profile and it’s no shrinking violet. Despite that I reckon it does taste varietal and it is one of
17 points
Drink 2015-2022
“Smoky nose. […] Still quite youthful but you can see where it is headed. Pretty chewy for the moment but nice savour. Really succulent.”
The following reviews are taken from an article written by Andrew Graham on a comparative tasting of Tapanappa’s Chardonnay’s amd Pinot Noir’s alongside Domaine Chanson’s Burgundy offerings.
Original article: http://www.ozwinereview.com/2013/04/chanson-tapanappa-quality-convergenc…
…Tapanappa Piccadilly Valley Chardonnay 2010
Top Burgundian vineyard dirt Sourced
…A seamless, satiny ride through the palate with a peppery, leafy herb inflection sitting high. Elegant feel with savoury tannin profile, muted oak and dry stalkiness chiming in. Complexity and finesse. Great expression fo Foggy Hill in 2010
94 points
…More than a few people expressed doubts when Brian Croser released his first Pinot Noir from the Foggy Hill Vineyard on the Fleurieu Peninsula. South Australian Pinot isn’t exactly a common commodity and apart from a few efforts in the
An exceptional wine likely to build along classical lines. Its complex, smoky bouquet of red rose petals, dark cherries and toasty vanilla oak reveals nuances of beetroot, rhubarb and five spice plus a whiff of dusty stalkiness. Long and elegant, …
Light, but still bright primary colour; an elegant and polished wine, harmony its key word; fruit, oak (30% new), tannins and acidity have been precisely judged; the palate is only light- to medium-bodied, yet has great length and persistence to …
This high-altitude Fleurieu Peninsula wine is both exquisitely balanced and very Burgundian. It’s a medium-bodied wine, concentrated, but with everything exquisitely in place. Matured in French oak barriques, it has dark cherry, brambly and savoury notes on the palate and …
And the evolution of this wine continues. Sealed now under screwcap, it has a pale, lilting red-purple colour in the glass and smells instantly of bright, fresh pinot noir, with cherry and strawberry fruits framed up by toasty, cedary oak; …
The latest Tapanappa pinot noir release from winemaking veteran Brian Croser’s Foggy Hill Vineyard – a cool site at 350 metres above sea level on the Fleurieu Peninsula – is both exquisitely balanced and scarily Burgundian. It’s a medium-bodied wine, …
A gorgeous wine from close to the Southern Ocean, Brian Croser’s Fleurieu vineyard named for its summer and autumn fogs. The 2010 growing season was a warm year, so this wine …
…Tapanappa Tiers Vineyard Piccadilly Valley Chardonnay 2010
Tapanappa Foggy Hill Vineyard Fleurieu Peninsula Pinot Noir 2010
In 2001 Lion Nathan acquired Petaluma (founded in 1976 by Brian Croser). But Croser retained control of the Tiers vineyard, a key source of
Brian Croser is the man behind the iconic Australian winery Petaluma – now part of the Lion Nathan Group. He moved on to create Tapanappa with the Bizot Family of Bollinger fame and the Cazes family from Chateau Lynch-Bages. Croser …
The bouquet offers seductive red fruit, cardamon and a savoury herbaceous, bramble note; the palate is finely laced with red fruits, with a surprising and refreshing level of fine grained tannins; soft on entry and firm to conclude, will benefit …
With a highly aromatic and complex aroma akin to a ‘warm vintage’ Volnay, this is an aromatically hedonistic, Foggy Hill Vineyard Pinot with a cunning, middle-weight palate. The classic, garnet Pinot hue is spot on in this wine and it …
This happened a while ago but we forgot to put it upon the site (my bad, S).
Our 2009 Foggy Hill Pinot Noir was rated equal top Australian Pinot, in the Five Nations Wine Challenge, just being notched out …
..
What I needed for my £20 was a wine with lowish tannins, a nice bit of acidity and intriguing flavours that come and go in the glass.
…
And third, to the cool Fleurieu Peninsula in South Australia, where …
Brian Croser, one of Australia’s most respected winemakers, has been on a mission to find the perfect spot to grow pinot noir in Australia. He settled on the Fleurieu Peninsula on the tip of Sotuh Australia, and the result, while …
Brian Croser raised a few eyebrows with his inaugural 2007 Foggy Hill, sourced from a region barely associated with top shelf Australian wine, let alone pinot noir. Then, with his follow up from 2008, Croser showed the capabilities of his …
To enter this site you must be at least 18 years old.
By clicking enter, I certify that I am over the age of 18.