2021 Mac Forbes EB74 After Midnight Gamay

WINEMAKER: Mac Forbes
REGION: Yarra Valley, VIC
VARIETAL: Gamay
VITICULTURE: Organic/Sustainable

"Gimme Gimme Gimme, some Gamay after midnight. Our first time working with this variety, we threw every type of fermentation at it. A bit of bunch, a spot of foot stomping, some cheeky concrete time and a little cab mac for good measure.

Gamay has long been a grape of interest and this is our first foray. Taking much from our learning and observations in Europe, we had originally intended to go hard with whole bunch and showcase the beautiful stalk tannins. Ultimately, the young vine fruit led the way, with its velvety soft skins too delicate to handle much carbonic maceration. We put a small portion of whole bunch topped with destemmed fruit in one of our concrete vessels to preserve the seductive dark fruits, and our carbonic ferment was foot stomped 5 days in to ensure the health of the ferment, finishing up as a crunchy red fruited component. Lots of lessons in this experiment.

Brilliantly alive in the glass with red/dark hues drawing in you to take a good sniff. The nose is wild and alive with perfume, darker red fruits and spice. This spice and velvety structure on the palate leaves both satisfaction and thirst. Dark fresh berries and rich spices successfully seduce the senses."

Wine that speaks of place is what Mac Forbes is all about, truly championing Australian terroir. One of the best in the game.