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Greg Melick embarked on the prodigal road to gambling and booze as a mere teenager, after winning the daily double at Werribee and spending the lot on good red wine. He ultimately returned to the straight and narrow, achieving the rank of ADF Major General, Senior Law Counsel, Master Wine Judge and Officer of Australia AO. Melick now grows his own, he remains besotted with les grands vignobles de Bourgogne, the illustrious Pinot Noir of Cote de Nuits and Cote de Beaune. There are few places in the world, more akin to the 1er Grand Cru style of Pinot Noir, than the temperate pastures along Tasmania's River Derwent. It was here in 2002, amongst the woodland idylls of the apple isle, that Melick established Pressing Matters, a meagre four hectares of superior European clones Pinot Noir. Mr Melick has come full circle, this time exchanging his wager in good wine, to win the highly coveted Royal Melbourne James Halliday Trophy for the finest Pinot Noir in Australia... Pressing matters in pinot noir»
Soumah
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Soumah
The fortuitous Soumah vines were established along Hexham Road, very near the auspicious Yarra Valley hamlet of Gruyere, just a short drive from the precious plantings of Yarra Yering and Coldstream Hills

Yarra Valley was the region of choice, for its acclaim in producing cool climate, clear varietal wines with savoury elegance. The Soumah raison d’etre is to support this fame with the definitive vineyard site, nurturing viticulture and a focus on quality over quantity. The viticultural team focus on the crucible of the wine grape. Over the centuries, the noble grape varietals of the old world traveled back and forth across Europe. Viognier is a distant cousin of Nebbiolo, Savarro began its history in Bolzano but is today found in France. Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir are found in France and Italy, albeit under different styles.

Soumah

It therefore widely regarded that the best practice is to continue to use clones, however plant a number of patches of different clones of the same variety. Planting the clones that have the history, provenance, style and flavour profile you want. This will create a more compelling and higher quality wine with more depth and a wider range of fragrance and taste profiles. This is a contributing factor why wines of the same variety, from the same region, can actually have different underlying flavours and characteristics.

Soumah take a supervised control philosophy in relation to viticulture practices. The French call it Lutte raisonnée or reasoned fight. The basis for this philosophy is to reduce the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides as these will eventually degrade the soil and make a weaker vine.

It is also about a well managed vine structure that helps reduce spray levels. Shoot thinning regimens are a practice designed to manage yield, balance crop, improve canopy structure and ventilation and reduce the need to spray.

Soumah

The reduction of sprays not only contributes to the health of vines and the greater ecosystem, but also to the health of the winegrowers. Soumah have experimented to reduce herbicides by mulching the vine row, the success of this will see the continuation of mulching on a progressive basis across the entire vineyard. This has the combined benefit of reducing evaporation in the summer and promoting a softer and more sustainable soil profile. The winemaking at Soumah is all about taking a modern scientific approach to traditional farming techniques. The small team of dedicated professionals practise a regimen of holistic, environmentally sound agricultural techniques, for the realization of small yield wines which are evocative of the timeless old world classics.

Soumah