Blanc de noirs 2018, pinot noir and meunier
White from black.
Black grapes, pressed so gently the juice stays pale, then six years on lees under the hill. The fullest of our four cuvées.
Ember Hill · Pokolbin
Buy the Blanc de Noirs 2018
White wine from black grapes. Red apple, almond, more weight in the glass.
- Grapes
- 80% pinot noir, 20% pinot meunier
- On lees
- Six years on lees
- Dosage
- Extra brut, 3 g/L
- Alcohol
- 12.5%
$74 a bottle, 750ml
18+ only. An adult signs for every delivery.
Tasting note
Our blanc de noirs, in the glass
Blanc de noirs means white from blacks: a white sparkling wine made from black grapes. Ours is the 2018 vintage, 80% pinot noir from the Hill Block and 20% pinot meunier from the Creek Block, made by the traditional method and aged six years on lees in the cellar under the hill.
It pours a deep straw colour with a gold edge, and a fine, persistent bead. The nose is red apple and baked pear, then almond and a savoury, bready warmth from the long time on lees. In the mouth it has more weight than anything else we make, broad across the middle, yet the finish is dry and long. It is extra brut, with a dosage of only 3 g/L, so the fruit and the lees do the talking.
If the Blanc de Blancs is the house in a straight line, this is the house with its sleeves rolled up. It is the cuvée we reach for when there is food on the table.
The wine
Blanc de Noirs 2018 in figures
- Grapes
- 80% pinot noir, 20% pinot meunier
- Vintage
- 2018
- Time on lees
- Six years on lees
- Dosage
- Extra brut, 3 g/L
- Alcohol
- 12.5%
- Price
- $74 a bottle
The press
How black grapes make a white wine
The flesh and juice of pinot noir and pinot meunier are clear. Only the skins carry colour, and colour only moves into the juice if the two are left together. So the trick of a blanc de noirs is speed and a light hand. We pick by hand in January, before dawn, so the bunches arrive cool and unbroken, and they go straight into the press as whole bunches.
The press squeezes slowly and gently, and the first, cleanest juice runs off almost as pale as chardonnay. That juice becomes this wine. It is the opposite of our Rosé, where the same Hill Block pinot noir is left on its skins for a day on purpose.
The blend
Pinot noir for structure, meunier for the middle
Pinot noir from the Hill Block makes up 80% of the blend and gives the wine its backbone: red apple, a firm line of acid and the weight that sets it apart. The other 20% is pinot meunier from the Creek Block, the lower rows along the creek. Meunier is softer and rounder, with a fruity, slightly spicy middle, and it fills out the palate so the wine feels generous rather than austere.
Six years on lees in the cellar takes that fruit somewhere else. The spent yeast breaks down slowly in the bottle and adds almond, toasted bread and a creamy texture to the bead. The bottles are turned by hand on the riddling racks, disgorged, dosed at 3 g/L and corked. The method page has every step.
Why so little dosage? A wine with this much body and six years of lees character needs very little sugar to round it. At 3 g/L the dosage takes the edge off the acid and leaves everything else alone, which is why Daniel Marsh, our chief winemaker, finishes it extra brut.
Black grapes, pale juice, and six years in the dark.
Food, serving and cellaring
How to drink it
With its weight and low dosage, this is a sparkling wine for a main course. Roast chicken with the skin crisp, pork belly, duck, mushrooms in brown butter, a gruyère or aged cheddar. It handles a little richness and salt far better than a lighter style, and it is very good with a simple bowl of hot chips.
Serve it at about 9 to 10°C, a degree or two warmer than the Rosé, so the almond and bread notes have room. Take it out of the fridge a few minutes before you pour, and use a white wine glass. It is drinking well now and will keep for a few years laid on its side somewhere cool and dark.
It is the natural partner for a long lunch at Lees, and it is one of the four cuvées in every cellar door tasting.
Questions
White wine from black grapes, explained
What does blanc de noirs mean?
Blanc de noirs is French for white from blacks. It is a white sparkling wine made only from black grapes, usually pinot noir and pinot meunier. The juice of those grapes is clear, so if they are pressed quickly and gently the wine stays pale. Ember Hill's Blanc de Noirs 2018 is 80% pinot noir and 20% pinot meunier, made by the traditional method.
How is blanc de noirs different from blanc de blancs?
Blanc de blancs is made only from white grapes, in our case chardonnay, and tends to be lean, citrusy and chalky. Blanc de noirs is made from black grapes and has more weight and red fruit. Our Blanc de Noirs shows red apple and almond and is the fuller of the two, with six years on lees and an extra brut dosage of 3 g/L, against five years and 6 g/L for the Blanc de Blancs.
How long is the Blanc de Noirs aged on lees?
The 2018 Blanc de Noirs spends six years on lees in the cellar under the hill. During that time the spent yeast slowly breaks down inside the bottle, adding almond, toasted bread and a creamy texture to the bead. After that it is riddled by hand until the lees gather in the neck, then disgorged, given its 3 g/L dosage and closed with a cork and wire.
What does extra brut mean on a sparkling wine?
Extra brut means very little sugar has been added at dosage, between 0 and 6 grams a litre. Brut allows up to 12. Our Blanc de Noirs is extra brut at 3 g/L, which leaves the wine dry and lets the fruit and the flavours of six years on lees show clearly. The fuller body of pinot noir and pinot meunier means it never tastes thin, even with so little sugar.
What food goes with blanc de noirs?
Blanc de noirs has the body to handle a main course. Try it with roast chicken, pork, duck, mushroom dishes, risotto or aged hard cheeses such as gruyère and cheddar. Its acid cuts through fat and its red apple and almond sit well beside roasted flavours. It is also a good match for fried food. Lighter starters and oysters suit the Blanc de Blancs better.
How much is the Blanc de Noirs and can it be delivered?
The 2018 Blanc de Noirs is $74 a bottle. You can add it to your cart on this page or buy it at the cellar door in Pokolbin, open daily from 10am to 5pm. Delivery is free on 6 bottles or more to NSW, the ACT, Victoria and Queensland, and on 12 or more anywhere in Australia. An adult needs to sign for the delivery.
Book a long lunch
Lees serves lunch Thursday to Monday, noon to 3pm, with a three-course menu at $95 or $135 matched with four cuvées.