CANOBOLAS~SMITH
Premium Hand-Made Wines


We have a wide range of wines at Canobolas-Smith. Here is an overview of the major styles. If you are after something more specific, please drop Justin or Murray an email or call 02 6365 6113.

Estate Blue Label

Chardonnay

Current release of this wine is the 2006 Chardonnay. The 2006 Chardonnay comes from a mild growing season. It is a wine with plenty of fruit weight and flavour. In typical Canobolas-Smith style it spent twelve months in French oak barriques (one third new). This barrel fermentation gives the wine complexity and style. The wine has a fine yet intense palate with a long finish. This wine is still developing and it will become more complex as it ages over the next few years.

2005 Wild Yeast Chardonnay

This is an excellent, rich round stylish Chardonnay, showing all the textural attributes of the ‘wild style’. Twelve months in older French oak barrels ‘sur lie’ provides the platform from which this delicious wine leaps. Peach fruit characters lead to a smooth, fruit-driven palate that has length and style. Typical cool climate acidity maintains the appeal. Drink now – 2011+. Limited stocks.

Tasting notes for our main wine styles

Chardonnay
Winemaking: Our premium Chardonnay grapes are hand-picked and chilled before whole bunch pressing. The wine is barrel fermented and aged "sur lie" with batonnage in new, one and two year French barriques with some malolactic fermentation. The barrels are blended after twelve months and held in tank until bottling.

Alchemy
Winemaking: This wine is a blend of our finest individual barrels. Cabernet Sauvignon provides the backbone of the wine with rich berry flavours and firm tannin structure. Cabernet Franc contributes a lifted nose of raspberries and cassis and Shiraz adds significant spice and complexity.


Estate Blue Label

Pinot Noir

Next Release 2008. A small production wine we hold small stocks of Pinot Noir for mail order customers. We have small amounts of 2005 and 2006; please call the Winery for price and avaialability details.

Shiraz

Current Release 2006. This wine has a very appealing deep red colour with youthful hints of purple. The nose has a delicious amalgam of red fruits and spice. The fruit characters are in the raspberry and blood plum spectrum. The palate is medium bodied with lovely weight and elegance. The palate continues the raspberry theme with eighteen months in oak giving the wine added richness and structure. Drink now – 2015+.

Alchemy

Current Release 2006. The 2006 Alchemy blend is 60% Cabernet Franc, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Shiraz. Deep mid-red in colour with ruby tones, the raspberry, blood plum Franc character dominates the nose and palate of this wine. Being a majority Cabernet Franc is quite a departure and it is most like the 1995 Alchemy which is still drinking well. The other departure was extended barrel aging – the wine spent 36 months in barrel with approximately 30% new barrels, all French. Three years maturation results in supple, enveloping tannins that provide structure without aggression. These supple tannins, which are fine and almost powdery, combined with the lifted sweet fruit character have given us an Alchemy which is more approachable than the still quite tight 2005. This is a young, cellar worthy and quite complete Alchemy where the three components Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz form a seamless whole. Drink to 2016+.

Cellar Door Label

2005 Lidster Pinot Noir

A wine at the dark cherry, plum end of the Pinot Noir spectrum. From a neighbouring vineyard at 900m, it is powerful and, at five years of age, only just beginning to soften. Ideal for partnering with many red meats and game dishes.

Small Blue Label

2003 Cabernets

The blend is 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Cabernet Franc. The Franc adds a lovely sweet fruit note to this smooth yet intense product of a very dry year. The fruit character of the wine is in the dark fruit spectrum with hints of savoury olive tapenade adding complexity to a wine that is coming into its drinking window. This wine drinks well now but will continue to improve in the bottle for several years. For those of you who enjoyed the 2002 Cabernets the 2003 is rounder, fuller and fleshier - a perfect partner for winter braises.

Strawhouse Label

2003 El Nino Chardonnay

This is a wine that has been slowly softening in bottle for a couple of years to the point where we are now happy for it to see light of day. A bold Chardonnay, with many Canobolas-Smith hallmarks, it is named for the drought year. 2003 gave us a small crop of intense fruit and coming as it did on the back of a run of excellent wines, we have been hypercritical of this wine. It doesn’t yet have the finesse and elegance of our top Chardonnays but it may achieve this in time. It is great value and has been received well at cellar door over the past six months. It will match most full flavoured foods. Drink now – 2013.