A new leaf for Tasmanian winery Delamere

 

Delamere is a leading Tasmanian wine producer that is 100% family owned and run by Shane Holloway and Fran Austin. All its wines are grown, made and bottled at the brand's Pipers River estate.

What happens, however, when some terrific fruit is for sale? The answer, start a new label, Flyleaf, and make some wines full of quaffability that are priced lower than the Delamere estate wines. 

Flyleaf - the name of the new limited-release range - refers to the free end page that is not stuck to the inner surface of a book cover. 

The name flyleaf aims to emulate the excitement of opening a brand new book; enjoying a new experience. 

"We love making wine in Tasmania, one of the last frontiers of Australian winemaking," say Holloway and Austin. 

"It is a region with so much exploration yet to be done.

"We source fruit for these wines not only from our own vineyards (new blocks, experimental batches etc) but also from growers around Tasmania , giving us a greater reach." 

The initial Flyleaf range comprises a 2021 rosé and a 2019 pinot noir with ultra-modern labels. 

"With the Fyleaf wines we get a chance to play around with winemaking a little bit, something we don't get so much with Delamere, where the wines are generally made to a specific style," Holloway said at a recent Red + White tasting in Hobart. 

"There is a lot of fruit being planted in Tasmania right now, and we see buying some of those grapes as a huge opportunity." 

  

The pinot noir is the standout for me: really solid Tasmanian pinot for around $36 a bottle is a rare beast. 

 

The duo have plenty of experience behind them. 

Holloway's first official foray into winemaking took place in 2001, although the seed was planted many years earlier when his family established their Adelaide Hills vineyard. 

A previous career path (marine biology and aquaculture) brought him to Tasmania where he took up a vintage cellar hand position to help pay the rent whilst undertaking post-graduate research.

Two weeks into harvest and he was hooked! From his new home base in Tasmania, he completed the Adelaide University post-graduate degree in winemaking and embarked on vintages in the Adelaide Hills, Yarra Valley and Oregon. 

Fran joined Shane in their Delamere Vineyard business in 2011. 

Having relocated to Tasmania from her home state of Western Australia a decade earlier to pursue a passion for cool-climate wines, she worked in Burgundy, Oregon, the Yarra Valley and the Adelaide Hills. 

Formerly chief winemaker with Bay of Fires, Austin was the 2005 Gourmet Traveller Young Winemaker of the Year, a 2009 Len Evans Tutorial Scholar and 2016 Don Martin Fellow.

See www.delamerevineyards.com.au/ or drop in and do a flight tasting at their cellar door.