2006 Sangiovese

"I'm not sure that it tastes much like traditional sangiovese - it tastes like there's a dab of viognier been blended in - but I am sure that it's a lovely wine to drink. This is worth taking a punt on. It tastes like dried tobacco, licorice, blackberry and sweet stone fruits, and it ain't half hard to knock back a few glasses of it. 2008-2011" Campbell Mattinson The Big Red Wine Book 2008 88/100

"The cool climes of Murrumbateman are marginal territory for sangiovese, although there’s something that’s certainly right. Talented winemaker, Bryan Martin, hasn’t released anything to indicate it can’t be done and his background in cooking means he knows exactly where to pitch this food-friendly sangiovese. The nose is varietal, authentic and shows tidy but complex varietal character. There are dried cherries and hard spices with an attractive twist of savoury meaty complexity, some dried herbs too. The palate is supple enough, more dried cherry here, it’s taut and juicy, just the way sangiovese should be, freshening through the finish with plenty of scope for food. It’s a bargain!" 90 points Nick Stock, Adelaide Review 8/07

“This is an incredibly good follow up to Bryan Martin’s 2005 vintage- winner of a gold medal & trophy at last years regional wine show. Bryan says he fermented both vintages on Viognier skins – a little trick, he believes, that helps to brighten & stabilise colour & smooth the texture. But this is mere seasoning to a delicious wine that captures the spirit of Italy’s ubiquitous sangiovese grape. There’s an Aussie style bright, inviting & fully dimension to Ravensworth. But the medium body & savoury persistent tannins that follow are Italian & the real point of difference in a wine that ought to blossom over the next five or six years.” Chris Shanahan Canberra Times April 2007

“Aromas of dried cherry, dried herb, licorice, spice and a touch of cedar oak. Very rich and ripe yet clearly varietal. On the palate medium to full bodied with an attractive mix of sweet and savoury with dried cherry, bitter chocolate and dried herb flavours. Firm sandy ‘food style’ tannins. This is a wine with plenty of style and verve. European in spirit yet proudly proclaiming its Australian upbringing. A snip at the price too” 91 points Gary Walsh, www.winorama.com.au

The 2006 Sangiovese was picked in mid-April at 13.8 baume, at the winery we de-stemmed the fruit to 3 2.3 tonne fermenters where is was soaked for 7 days prior to natural fermentation, the temperatures were allowed to get quite warm (32C) and then the fermenters were pressed after 17-22 days. We use 20% new Bossuet oak from France for this wine and after 11 months its is taken out and bottled under screwcaps. I would recommend a few months to settled down and then drink over the next 5-8 years.  Bryan Martin - Winemaker

2005 Sangiovese

"Aromas of dried cherry, licorice, dark tobacco, black pepper and dried flowers. It is rich and varietal yet distinctly Australian. On the palate medium to full bodied and packed with dried berry/cherry fruit, tobacco and earthy flavours. Very dry meaty wine with grainy tannins and an earthy savoury finish. Drinking it makes me feel like popping out for a big bowl of pasta and really enjoying myself." 90/100 Winorama October 2006

Sangiovese is an oddity in the Canberra District, and Ravensworth’s Bryan Martin reckons the region’s climate is marginal for the variety. This hasn’t stopped him playing around with it, and the results so far have been good.
Current release 2005 – This youngster has the sort of Italian deli smells that encapsulate Sangiovese’s unusual charm: dark-cherry, prune, spice, and rustic smoky aromas and flavours are ripe, yet typically Sangiovese. The palate is just as much about texture as flavour. Cherry scented and slightly aniseedy varietal fruit is coupled to a grainy mouth feel and a grippy aromatic finish. Very interesting. Try it with pasta and tomato-based sauces." 90/100 Penguin Good wine guide 2007

"This has coconut, raspberry, aniseed and burnt licorice aromas, joined by pepper, mint and spices in the mouth.  It responds well to breathing, and is quite complex and alcohol-warm, with dried-cherry and dried-plum flavours.  Typically for Sangiovese, the tannins are assertive but not green or hard.  It has a different spectrum of flavours and is food friendly – meaty casseroles do the job well" Huon Hooke Gourmet Traveller Wine Magazine, August 2006 Best buys under $30

"The Ravensworth team is on to a good thing with its sangiovese. It has good varietal dark cherry fruit and spicy tobacco and savoury undergrowth aromas too. Ravensworth has been able to tame sangiovese's more astringent attributes as well. There's still good acid fo a cleansing finish, along with some dry tannins, but these are balanced by a full-rounded mouthfeel. Good drinking now" Fregus McGhie, Canberra Times April 19, 2006.

"...the Sangiovese rates as one of the best Australian shots I've seen of this Italian variety. Tuscan versions can range from dire to devine, with the best expamples offering lifted perfume and tight elegant structure. Ravensworth is headed in the later direction with its bright, pure fruit aroma and flavour and taut, fine tannin structure. It needs a little time in the bottle to emerge as a vibrant and sophisticated expression of the variety. Chris Shanahan, Top Drops. Canberra Time March 12, 2006

2006 Riesling "2006 is shaping up to be a great year for Canberra region Riesling. Made around march and now in bottle ready for spring, the Ravensworth Riesling is delicious. Its fresh vibrant citrus, particularly lime, flavours will make great summer drinking.Its has appealing hints of honeysuckle flower, musk and a dry fresh acidity that keeps the wine tight, steely and dry." Fregus McGhie, Handpicked. Canberra Times 29 August 2006

Ravensworth 2005Marsanne

Bryan Martin, assistant winemaker at Clonakilla, is turning out a superb range of wines from the Canberra District under his own label. The Marsanne has an infusion of Viognier, producing a distinct new, aromatic style: rich, spicy and apricot/honey flavoured.     
Bryan Martin is an adventurous soul who’s planted a few left-field grape varieties in his Canberra-district vineyard, and Marsanne is one of them. Inspired by the success of other Rhone varieties in the region, particularly Viognier, Martin has shown that Marsanne can work well too.
Current release 2005 - This is one of the most aromatically powerful Australian Marsanne we’ve ever had. It surprised us a lot, until we discovered that it had 10% Viognier blended in. The Viognier certainly shows in the pot-pourri of floral and spicy scents that leap out of the glass, and some more subtle lemon, nutty and leesy notes give it real complexity. A thread of oak doesn’t intrude and it has a smooth, long palate that finishes dry and aromatic. Serve it with feta pastries. 94/100
Penguin Good Wine guide 2007

“With a smidgen of Viognier added to boost the nose, this is a rich wine with apricot, fig jam and spicy aromas leading to a generous, almost opulent palate with loads of flavour but also balance and drinkability” 93 (Five-Star rating - outstanding) Huon Hooke Gourmet Traveller Wine Magazine, August 2006 Top 100 Wine

Ravensworth Canberra District Shiraz Viognier 2005

Ravensworth’s Bryan Martin is assistant winemaker to Tim Kirk at Clonakilla, the Canberra region’s (and Australia’s?) master of the Shiraz Viognier blend. Bryan’s wine seems more influenced by the white Viognier than Clonakilla’s version, but its pretty good all the same.
Current release 2005 – A pungent, aromatic red wine that’s impossible to ignore in a line-up of Shirazes. It has floral pot-pourri, plum, pepper and spice on the nose, with a seasoning of lightly toasty oak. It smells intense and its tastes deliciously smooth with pepper and dark-cherry flavours of length and concentration, leading through dry and firm, but not harsh, tannins. It needs bottle age, then serve it with roast duck. Rating: 96/100 Penguin Good Wine Guide 2007

"Here's one for those who prize elegance in their shiraz. It's a medium bodied, spicy style with abundant but gentle tannins, balanced 14% alcohol and low key oak. Cool grown spices mingle with coffee grounds and lighter berry fruits" Huon Hooke
Top 100 New Releases Gourmet Traveller Wine magazine October/November 2005

2005 Shiraz Viognier "After a 3 hour decant, an exotic nose, smelling of sweet florals, plummy fruits, with black pepper, raspberries, dried papaya and dried apricots, cinnamon quills. The palate shows savoury red fruits, punchy, a glove-full from Joe Frazier, fleshy without being too sweet, with underlying spices and a barky dryness that dominates the finish. Very good length – getting better and better with time" www.winorama.com.au 29 August 2006

"They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and, although Tim Kirk of Canberra-based icon Clonakilla feels it almost constantly, this wine comes closer than most. His assistant winemaker, Brian Martin, has studiously learned from the master and applied his hand to creating his own swanky cool-climate shiraz, spiced with a splash of viognier. This is the first release from his first crop; the cuttings taken from Kirk’s vineyard and planted in just 2003. It’s made in a similar fashion and shaped very much in the footsteps of its inspiration and predecessor. Lots of ripe berry fruit, spices and gentle sweet pepper all swirl around in a bright lifted fragrant nose. The oak is nicely integrated with exuberant young fruit. The palate is smooth, even and balanced. It flows from front to back without seemingly any effort and finishes bright and crisp. A very promising first effort."
91 points. Nick Stock, The Adelaide Review, 2 August, 2006

"From a small vineyard near Canberra (and not far form that great producer of Shiraz Viognier, Clonakilla!), this is a terrifically characterful red wine. The cool-grown shiraz provides juicy, thight black fruit, while the addition of the white viognier lends a remarkable, exotic citrus flavour - like blodd orange juice" Max Allen, Taste, The Weekend Australian magazine, 27July 2006.

"Wow, deep purple with full array of spice and maraschino cherry aromas, the 2005 Ravensworth Shiraz Viognier is a stunning wine. There's aniseed, clove and pepper on the palate with velvety-smooth tannins on the finish. It will improve with some age but it's so seductive now that I predict the majority of this vintage will never see the inside of the cellar" Something Special, Fergus McGhie, Handpicked, The Canberra Times, July 5, 2006.

" … a very fine wine - and very reminiscent of the Clonakilla big gun. It's splashed with white and black pepper and banged up with blackberry jube and licorice, with fine, dry, peppery tannins taking it out. The viognier shows in a textbook blossomy sweetness, but if you like the Clonakilla style I guarantee that you will like this. The price is very, very reasonable. Drink: 2006-2014. 91 points." Campbell Mattinson, www.winefront.com.au

"The wine is excellent and stunning value. One of the "new wave" of wines with freshness and admirable fruit concentration. There is impressive vibrancy and raciness from good "cooler climate" acidity. And it has genuine interest, drinkability and ageability for those of us with more than a passing interest in great wines and wine styles." Randalls, July 2006

"Winemaker Bryan Martin works at Clonakilla Wines, Murrumbateman, helping Tim Kirk with the Clonakilla products and making his own wines under the Ravensworth label. Bryan's first Shiraz Viognier blend improves significantly on the very good straight Shirazes of recent years. It's a seamless, seductive drop squarely in the highly aromatic, savoury, refined style pioneered by Clonakilla and glimpsed in several others from the Murrumbateman and Hall sub-regions. Ravensworth is another significant wine for Canberra, cementing Shiraz as the district's great specialty. It's wine of this calibre that'll put Canberra on the map." Chris Shanahan, Top Drop, Canberra Times, June 4, 2006

"This dense purplish wine smells of spice, mint, black fruits and plum pudding. It has medium body, easy texture, good length and soft tannins.  It's a gently aromatic, earthy Canberra regional wine, not as complex as its neighbour Clonakilla but very good.  A shiraz at odds with the South Australians."
4.5 Stars (First class, a wine of distinction) and "a steal at the price"
Ralph Kyte-Powell, Epicure uncorked, Tuesday 15th Nov. 2005.

"This smells interesting: raspberries, blackberries, with some apricot lift, savoury oak, and a whiff of sulphide adding complexity.  Has grip and plenty of dusty tannins on the palate with lovely sweet berry fruits too.  Finishes with mouth-aromas of wholemeal raisin toast.  Delicious again. 92/100, $22.50"  Tim White, Australian Financial Review, 12/08/2005.

"Bryan Martin's Ravensworth Shiraz 2004 was a standout for me in a strong field of local shiraz judged at the National Press Club a few weeks back. Its very young and still in the journey from juice to wine.  But the lifted, floral perfume and supple, vivacious varietal fruit flavour are out of the ordinary…" Chris Shanahan, The Canberra Times July 2005.

"A very well made Canberra District Shiraz showing blackberry notes and some spicy aromatics. The variety is expressed very cleanly on a fine, well balanced palate".  Highly recommended Winewise Small Vignerons Awards 2005

"There is no mention of viognier but this wine certainly does have a floral lift, and very attractively so. It also has a gorgeously supple texture matched here, not too overt oak, but instead to an easy, earthen, chaly, spice-train of cherried, curranty, toasty fruit. It's cool climate style and it's a very good one. If this happens to be your style, this is quite enormous value.  Drink 2006-2012 92/100" Campbell Mattinson, Winefront Monthly 12/2005