Wilson Vineyard | NEWS AND TRIVIA FILE

One of the more frustrating aspects of the wine business is knowing that whatever wine is made, it will ultimately be measured against a "benchmark" based on "old world" wine styles, and therefore, by definition and using the existing rules, whilst an Australian wine may approach say champagne, sherry, burgundy or claret, there's Buckley's chance that the rest of the world will ever acknowledge that we do it best. And, of course given our unfortunate national trait of self-castigation, there's no way that such recognition could even occur within our own country.

But it just happens that there is one style of wine where the French missed their chance. Sure, Australia pinched the idea from them; the difference is that we got it right. It's our distinctive sparkling burgundy.

Unfortunately we have to persist with the old-world name, at least in the medium term.

At The Wilson Vineyard we have been tinkering away with our first of the style for a couple of years, and can now offer the finished product. But there remained the haunting question, that if Australia was setting the pace with the style, how did we get there, where, when. and by whom? I attempt, herein, to answer some of these questions.

But first let me start by debunking the popular mythology that is widespread within the wine industry. The story goes that our diggers in France during the Great War took a fancy to Bouzy Rouge; Bouzy being a town in the Champagne region of France, and that after their return to Australia convinced winemakers to produce something similar.

The mission to get to the bottom of the matter has involved long hours in dusty old archives, and wasted time in chasing up dead-ends. The greatest tragedy is that the very raw material that would answer our questions with greatest accuracy has long been thrown out, and here I am referring to such items as order books, and correspondence files of the various wine companies.

Some explanation of terminology is here appropriate. I have avoided the use of the term "Sparkling Burgundy" in my own text, however it will appear frequently where quotations or direct references to a particular product are concerned. The application of capitals to either one or both words will follow the original reference. The term "sparkling red burgundy" is reserved for the European wines; I have used, as far as possible, the term "Australian sparkling burgundy" to describe the unique and robust local style.

The wine of Champagne was originally a still red wine, although a little lighter in body and colour than burgundy. The evolution of sparkling champagne occurred during the seventeenth century, aided by the cork, stronger glass bottles, and a climatic change towards colder conditions.

The colder climate had two significant effects. Firstly the grapes were very late in ripening, if in fact they did ever ripen, and fermentation was usually arrested by the cold winter, only to recommence during the spring to produce the sparkle. The second effect was to decrease the level of colour in the grapes.

Andre Simon records, in his History of Champagne, that Champagne enjoyed a monopoly on sparkling wine until 1820, when the first sparkling burgundy was produced by one Monsieur J. Laussere, of Nuits St-George, making 150,000 bottles in that year. He made one million bottles in each of 1825, 1826, and 1827.

But just what colour were the early sparkling burgundies? The situation in Burgundy is compounded by the fact that the region produces still wines that are both red and white, and to this day the term "sparkling burgundy" may refer to the white sparkling wines of chardonnay, or the variously tinted red wines of pinot noir. Wasserman, in his book, "Sparkling Wine", says of sparkling Burgundy, that contrary to popular belief.. is not always red. It may be white, or rose: in fact it is rarely red. Rankine compares the French and Australian versions, making the comment that In France, sparkling burgundy is a lighter style with less sweetness, and is made from Pinot Noir.

It seems that sparkling burgundy never made any great impact on the British market for sparkling wine. The following figures relate to the quantity (in gallons) of bottled sparkling wine imported during the year 1900.

Champagne 1,382,211
Saurnur 152,921
Hock 53,779
Moselle 49,242
Burgundy 14,691
Other sorts 4,110

Considering the importance of Britain as a market, the slightly less am 90,000 bottles from all producers, represents quite a comedown from M. Laussere's ambitious annual production of one million.

At this point it is timely to make mention that in 1917, things were so bad in Bordeaux, that they produced a sparkling Ducru Beaucaillou.

It seems that sparkling burgundy had one last try in the 50s and 60s, this time targeting the US and Canadian market under the trade mark of Cold Duck. The term had its origin as a translation of the German Kalte Ente which was the name of a fashionable 19th century white wine.

Australia is currently a very fashionable destination for those employed in the British wine trade, and I have made use of this procession as it has passed my way to enquire of the current status of sparkling red burgundy. When one encounters young people, but with still five years in the trade, who have never seen, sold, or tasted a bottle of sparkling red burgundy, one can fairly conclude that the style has seen its day.

No discussion on Australian sparkling burgundy could be complete without touching on Keats 'Ode to a Nightingale. Zealots on matters of wine may argue that this is irrelevant. The problem with vinous zealots is that they forget that romantics thrive on wine too.

Much has been written on Keats and the interpretation of his works, however despite learned opinion on the mood and imagery that Keats it trying to convey, as far as the literary academics are concerned, it would seem that any dissection of the Pipe of wine is irrelevant to the exercise. The only point of any help here is that The older poets, says Keats, erred in thinking of the Muses' spring as water: the true Hippocrene, the authentic drink of inspiration, is claret.

Ode to a Nightingale was written in May 1819. In 1817, Keats wrote Endymion ii, which carried a similar theme.

Could it have been that the origins of sparkling (red) burgundy were a little in advance of the 1820 quoted by Simon, and that these wines were helped along by the generous addition of some full bodied material from the south of France? Very doubtful. Wine appears only occasionally in Keats' works, and whilst we can reasonably deduce that he was an enthusiastic imbiber, he was certainly not an expert.

Or could it be that Keats' sparkling wine was purely a fantasy created by the poet, that conveniently fitted his concept of Hippocrene? If that was so then it was a mysteriously accurate premonition of Australian sparkling burgundy that would be another 75 years coming. Add in the letter from Keats to his sister Fanny, written in May 1819 .. please heaven, a little claret-wine cool out of a cellar a mile deep... Sounds a bit like the cellars of Great Western!

Australia's first "Sparkling Burgundy" was produced in 1881, by the Victorian Champagne Company. This company was established by Melbourne doctor and parliamentarian, Louis Lawrence Smith, in 1881, and employed the talents of a French champagne maker, Auguste D'Argent. Their "Sparkling Burgundy" was evidently a sideline to the champagne styles produced. It was described as being 11 rose-coloured", which placed it very much in the European style. The Victorian Champagne Company marked the first serious attempt to produce sparkling wine in Australia. Its success was short-lived, and in 1884 the company went into voluntary liquidation. Auguste D'Argent died later in the same year.

It would be another ten years before there was any serious output of sparkling wine in Australia, and the two centres responsible for this were Hans Irvine's Great Western in Victoria, and Auldana near Adelaide. Minchinbury did not commence operation until 1908.

Mention of Auldana to the average Adelaide resident will bring the response that it is a fashionable eastern foothills suburb. But there will be very few who will associate the name with wine.

Yet, a century ago, Auldana was technologically advanced, was respected for the quality of its wines, and enjoyed great prominence in the marketplace.

The Auldana vineyard had been started in 1846 by Patrick Auld, and had undergone considerable expansion as it pursued exports to Britain. But in 1888, after the export business had got into difficulties, and after the death of Patrick Auld in 1886, the mortgagee, Josiah Symon took possession of the winery. Symon was one of Adelaide's leading legal figures, and politically active. He had been Attomey-General in the 1881 Morgan ministry, and was pro-Federation, and an advocate of free trade. He was later knighted at the time of becoming a Senator in the first Federal Parliament. Edmond Mazure was employed to manage the production. The decision was later made to enter the production of champagne, and an expansion programme of the cellars was commenced.

Penfolds purchased Auldana in the 1940s. The only Auldana asset to remain with Penfolds is the St. Henri label.

An early (c1880) photograph of Auldana, in the Adelaide foothills suburb of Magill. It was here that Australia's unique style of sparkling burgundy was created by Edmond Mazure in 1892. There is little today outwardly recognisable of the turn of the century Auldana, and since 1979 the old building has housed a liquor retailer. But inside, the old brick-arched cellars constructed by Mazure are very much as built, complete with a basket conveyor for moving wine up or down. Where there were once proud vineyards is now suburban housing estate.
Courtesy Mortlock Library of SA

If you visit Great Western today, the people there will tell you that their best sparkling burgundy has always been made from a special patch of old shiraz in the vineyard immediately in front of the cellars. None will dispute that the sparkling burgundies of Great Western have established themselves as classics of the style during this century.

At Great Western, the move to produce champagne started in 1890. The first record of a sparkling burgundy comes from the Royal Agricultural Society's Melbourne wine show in 1894, when Hans Irvine and Co was commended. for a Sparkling Burgundy in the class for Australian Sparkling Wine. In 1895, we find that amongst the gold medal awards at the Bordeaux Exhibition is an 1893 Sparkling Burgundy from Hans Irvine. The Bordeaux Exhibition was interesting for the fact that the grape varieties were listed for each wine. In the case of Irvine's Sparkling Burgundy it was "Pinot N."

Our current status of knowledge on the activities of Great Western around the turn of the century is inadequate. One of the great traps encountered in matters historical is the blind acceptance of facts quoted by earlier researchers. Back in 1960 Benwell recorded that the first release of Great Western champagne took place at the time of Federation.. Whilst logic would suggest that ten years is an unusually protracted period from the start of production to the release of product, Benwell's version has persisted. In fact, we find that Great Western champagnes were being marketed as far afield as Kalgoorlie as early as 1894.

In 1901, Leo Buring filed a detailed report in Garden and Field on the production of champagne at Great Western. He went on to report that:

It is not only white wine that can be treated in this way, but also red wines of a Burgundy type. Connoisseurs have expressed themselves very satisfactorily as to the qualities of the sparkling burgundy produced by Mr. Irvine; and when we consider its value in convalescence from debilitating diseases, it would be expected that a sparkling red wine would be recommended in preference to the white wine.

In 1902 Hans Irvine and Co. were quoting the following prices for their sparkling wines. All were claimed to be showing an increased demand.

Champagne - special reserve: 75 shillings, and 80 shillings for pints.
Sparkling hock: 42 shillings and 48 shillings.
Sparkling Burgundy: 60 shillings and 65 shillings.

By 1906 the range had increased to two champagnes, but still with the Sparkling Burgundy at the same price as in 1902.

One of the few documents that has survived from the Hans Irvine era is an undated price list. The list is definitely post-1908, because it refers to an award at the Franco-British Exhibition of that year. Yet that list features two sparkling burgundies, the Red Label at 60 shillings per case, and the Special Blue Label for 45 shillings per case. By this time Great Western also had on offer a Sparkling Moselle. A 1912 report notes that Great Western sparkling burgundy was being exported to New Zealand.

We cannot be entirely sure that the 'pinot noir' referred to in the original sparkling burgundy was really pinot noir, or possibly some other pinot, such as pinot meunier. In an 1894 letter to the Australian Vigneron and Fruitgrower, Hans Irvine advises:

Pinean Nord (Burgundy) - I will commence cutting for champagne about the 5th of March, being earlier than other varieties.

We can only wonder whether it was spelling or handwriting that Irvine had a problem with, but there can be no doubt that whatever grape it was, that it was an early ripener and was low in colour.

At some point the Great Western sparkling burgundy changed from a pinot (and presumably light style) to the classic Australian shiraz-based style. We do not know when this happened, or whether it was a gradual transition. The probability is that the change took place after Seppelts acquired Great Western. The clue here may be the wine shows.

The early appearance of winning Minchinbury wines in the Adelaide show, and of Auldana wines in Sydney would suggest that those respective producers and wine shows had established their definition of style for Australian sparkling burgundy. It is only post 1920 that we see Great Western making an appearance in the Adelaide and Sydney shows.

Today the name is synonymous with Penfolds, however the development of the sparkling wine industry in New South Wales occurred when Minchinbury was in the hands of James Angus and Sons. Penfolds acquired Minchinbury in 1913.

By 1907, Minchinbury had commenced production of champagne, although the official "inauguration of the champagne industry" at Minchinbury took place in 1908. Early reports on Minchinbury do not mention a sparkling burgundy, however Minchinbury won the newly introduced class for sparkling burgundy in the 1909 Sydney show which specified the wine to be of 1906 vintage or older.

1913 was a good year for Minchinbury Sparkling Burgundy in the wine shows, but it did not fare as well with the Californians. An assortment of Australian wines was submitted to a dinner of the Grape Growers Association of California in February of that year. The selection included four sparkling wines, a champagne and sparkling burgundy respectively from Minchinbury and Auldana. The Californians were invited to give their honest opinion on the wines, which appears to be exactly what they did.

Their spokesman reported: With regard to the sparkling wines, I found the Minchinbury extra dry special cuvee quite a good sparkling white wine. I did not, however, care at all for any of the other sparkling wines. Another taster thought that the carbonated red wines were poor.

There can be little doubt that Edmond Mazure deserves the honour of being the creator of the Australian sparkling burgundy style. One other acknowledgment is due, and that is to Ernest Whittington of the Adelaide Observer. From 1895, Whittington filed numerous and meticulous reports on his wine excursions. Such other contemporaneous sources of information on the wine industry that exist are largely superficial and scant.

This year 35,000 gallons of wine has been made, principally Claret, sparkling burgundy, and sparkling Cup.

Also present at the same visit were Messrs E.A. and D Tolley, who were showing an interest in Mazure's French pruning shears, and the application of selected levures (yeasts) that had been in use at Auldana during recent vintages

.. in the cellar we sampled the sparkling Cup, sparkling Burgundy and Claret, and ate Monsieur's excellently pickled olives, and felt peacefully inclined to the world... .. "and", remarked our host, "if you don't go and 'top' what you have had with spirit, you will sleep well, have a good digestion, feel happy, and be minus a 'head' in the morning." Well that speaks volumes for the quality of the wine.

Mr Tolley was highly pleased with the sparkling Burgundy, remarking "that it was a credit to the colony." "Well", said the expert, "if it had not been for the levures we would not have been able to make that wine."

The "sparkling Cup" referred to above was Auldana's champagne style that was reported by Garden and Field, in June 1894, as ready to be put on the market.

From Whittington's 1895 report, we can reasonably deduce that the first use of French levures at Auldana was during the 1892 vintage, although there is reference to the use of "colonial levures" during the preceding two vintages.

Whittington's report of 1896 gave greater detail on the vineyard at Auldana, reporting that plantings covered 140 acres.

Shiraz 55 acres
Cabernet 15 acres
Malbec 10 acres
Morrastel 10 acres
Carignan 4 acres

Balance is Tokay and Ferment Muscat(sic). The age of the vines was approximately 35 years.

From Whittingtons 1898 report: This year he (Mazure) intends making about 50,000 gallons of principally the celebrated St. Henri claret. He is also hopeful of turning out about 2,000 dozen of his famous sparkling Burgundy. Last year Auldana produced 1,500 dozen of this brand...
.. A feature of the new cellars connected with the vineyard is a tunnel which is driven under the Magill Hill to a distance of 50 feet and in which the temperature has never been known to exceed 600. This cool retreat is utilized for storing "Sparkling Burgundy" and other wines in course of maturing.

Most references to Auldana quote 1895 as the year that sparkling wine production commenced at Auldana, although that date more correctly would apply to the extension works of the cellars. But clearly, Mazure was making sparkling wine before 1895. To have the Sparkling Cup available in mid 1894, would suggest that the wine was put down in 1893. Given that the facilities for sparkling wine production were in place then, and the above hint that Sparkling Burgundy needed some maturation, we can reasonably assume that the wine that Whittington tasted in 1895, was put down in '93.

The critical question arises as to whether Mazure's early wines more closely approximated the lighter bodied French wines, or whether the now-familiar "Keatsian" shiraz-based style was produced right from the onset.

On the evidence available it would appear that the wines were big from the start. At Auldana, Mazure worked with a young Hurtle Walker. Hurtle's son Norm later joined his father making sparkling wines at the Romalo Cellars. Norm Walket is still involved in the wine industry, and is in no doubt that the style of sparkling burgundy produced at Romalo was always "big and gutsy". "Most of the base wine for those sparkling burgundies was shiraz that came from A. P. Birks in Clare, and their wines were always big, so big that sometimes they had to be broken down first."

On 29 May 1906, New Zealand prime Minister, the Right Honourable Richard Seddon lunched at Auldana as part of a visit to Adelaide. The lunch was held in one of the maturing cellars, and the distinguished visitor commented that the Champagne and Sparkling Burgundy were a great surprise to him, and were greatly appreciated.

This photograph of the function has Mazure closest to the camera, and Seddon on his right. At this stage Mazure was Managing Director of Auldana. Second on Edmond Mazure's left is his son Henri.

The illustration is from a souvenir booklet held by the Mortlock Library of SA.

The Adelaide Wine Show was the first to introduce a class for sparkling burgundy in 1907. Mazure was a regular show judge, and there seems little doubt that he would have been strongly behind this move. The Adelaide wine show records provide valuable information in the early years.

Generally only the winner of the class, and occasionally the runner-up were listed, with some occasional very interesting judges' comments on the standard and style of the wines

1907 Auldana
1908 Auldana
1909 Auldana - one exhibit only but a very good exhibit of Sparkling Burgundy and worth the special prize.
1910 no class listed
1911 Auldana, lst and 2nd (On this occasion the class was changed to "Australian Sparkling Red Wine").
1912 Auldana lst & 2nd.
1913 J. Angus and Sons. The judges commented that these wines would have been better if not so dry. Finer sparkling burgundys (sic) have been shown in past years.
1914 1st & 2nd Auldana. VHC Penfolds, (Sydney). A very fine lot of sparkling red wines of Burgundy type.
1915 1st no award.
2nd Auldana Ltd. "A poor lot"
1916 1st and 2nd Auldana Ltd. "A very fair collection of sparkling burgundies."
1917 Mrs H Mazure, Auldana Ltd
1918 1st Auldana Ltd
2nd E. Mazure
1919 1st Auldana Ltd
2nd Auldana Ltd.
1920 lst & 2nd La Perouse Vineyards, 3rd Auldana. Well prepared wines.
1921 1st & 2nd E. Mazure; 3rd R W Wright.
1922 No prizes awarded - wines poor quality.
1923 B. Seppelt & Son, Buring &
Sobels. The prize wines very good.

Yet it had to wait until 1965 before there were formal specifications for the Adelaide Show. In that year the Wine Committee drew up a series of precise specifications for all the classes. The specification for Australian Sparkling Burgundy: Colour should be light to medium ruby. In older wines, may show a trace of amber, but not more than a trace. Bouquet fruity but should show bottle age. Fairly pronounced acidity. Full flavour and body, some sweetness but with dry finish. May show slight oak character. Bubbles should be fine and persistent. (Make sure glasses are not washed in detergent.)

The first class for Sparkling Burgundy in the Sydney Wine Show was in 1909, which was a timely move for James Angus and Sons of Minchinbury, who won the award that year. Minchinbury dominated subsequent Sydney shows, although Auldana took first prize in the 1911 show. In 1914, Minchinbury won the award again, but under the Penfold banner.

Whilst a Hans Irvine Sparkling Burgundy took an award in the Australian Sparkling Wine class in the Melbourne Wine Show in 1894, Melbourne persisted with the one class for all sparkling wines, and the next sparkling burgundy to take a prize within the class was a Minchinbury wine with third prize in the 1910 show.

Merrily Hallsworth is Mazure's great-grand-daughter, and has been researching his life for some years. I have no doubt that in her own time, Merrily will publish the results of her research. I have not set out to give a complete biography of Edmond Mazure, but merely to present such material as appears relevant to his development of Australian sparkling burgundy.

Hitherto, the only useful source of biographical material on Edmond Mazure was an entry in the 1909 Cyclopedia of South Australia. According to this reference, Mazure was born in 1864. If we are to believe anecdotal evidence, those who were featured in the Cyclopedia of South Australia paid for the privilege, and we might therefore reasonably expect that the biographical material met their approval. But there is strong evidence that Mazure was born in 1861, as witnessed on his marriage certificate and headstone.

Mazure's entry in The Cyclopedia Of South Australia contains other errors of a spelling nature, suggesting that the editors may have had some trouble with handwritten copy, and that Mazure was never given a proof to check. This could explain the printing of a 4 instead of a 1 for his year of birth. His wife's maiden name is incorrectly shown as Gally.

The same source tells us that Mazure's father and uncle had vineyards in Burgundy, and that at the age of 18 he spent nine months working at Clos Vongeot (sic - it should be Vougeot). Thereafter he worked in the wine industry in Spain and came to Australia via the Dutch East Indies.

In 1885, Edmond Mazure married Philomene Henriette Gelly in Adelaide. Henriette, as she was generally known, was a sister of Joseph Gelly, winemaker of Beaumont, and later Chateau Tanunda.

In 1888, Mazure was employed by Josiah Symon to manage the Auldana vineyard. Mazure was taken into partnership of Auldana in 1899, and became Managing Director when Auldana became a limited company in 1903.

Auldana's most famous wine was St Henri Claret, which I suspect was Australia's first trade named wine. Was it named after Mazure's first son Henri, or was it inspired by Henriette? Henri, or Harry as he was commonly known, was no saint, and deserted his wife and young family, never to be seen again.

In 1909, Edmond Mazure acquired property at Magill, that had formerly been part of the original Auld estate, and renamed the house "La Perouse". He continued making sparkling wines in the stable, and then entered into an arrangement with New Zealander, Bertram Reginald Collins, that saw the construction of the now famous Romalo Champagne Cellars. Mazure's intention was to run the venture as "La Perouse"; the "Romalo" name was coined by Collins from his daughter Roma, and her fried Lois!

There is anecdotal evidence that the departure from Auldana, and the arrangement with Collins were traumatic times for Mazure, and were financially disastrous. It is recorded that Mazure!s family did not speak fondly of Symon, and there was a period when "La Perouse" was in Henriette's name. Their later years were spent in relative poverty and obscurity.

When Edmond Mazure died on 29 April 1939, the event was not reported by the wine industry publications of the time.

After Henriette died in 1940, their photographs and records were all burnt, and all the wine trophies* were disposed of.

We are left in no doubt that Mazure endeared himself to the people of South Australia. A report of 1900 described him as Mr "Auldana" Mazure, the popular manager and part proprietor of Auldana Vineyard. Ernest Whittington's reports on Mazure were always colourful, such as his affectionate 1903 description of the vivacious little Gaul.

In the Australian Brewing and Wine Journal of October 20, 193 1, a feature article on Auldana acknowledged Edmond Mazure as the pioneer of sparkling wine making, on a commercial basis in South Australia.

Some comment on the pronunciation of Mazure is appropriate. It does not rhyme with manure, and is phonetically best represented as 'Mazzy'r', with some emphasis on the 'a', and without dwelling on the second syllable.

*These were the trophies won by Mazure at La Perouse. Auldana retained its own trophies, but these were evidently not included in the sale to Penfolds. Where are they now?

A 1901 advertisement for Auldana in Garden and Field. Auldana gave heir sparkling burgundies a high profile. At Great Western and Minchinbury, the priority was very much champagne production.

Why did Mazure create the unique style of Australian sparkling burgundy? This is where we pass into the realm of informed speculation. There are several postulates.

Postulate One. There is evidence of intercolonial rivalry between Auldana and Great Western. Great Western had the jump on Auldana by about three years in producing sparkling wine, and it seems that Auldana was compelled to match them. The clue here may well be the wine shows, which were more flexible in their application of classes then, than they are now; we know that Edmond Mazure was a regular judge for the Adelaide show.

There was a change in description of class in Melbourne, in 1894, to accommodate Irvine's sparkling burgundy. The 1895 Adelaide wine show included a new class for 'sparkling wine other than champagne', for which Auldana took the prize, and although the show results do not tell us what that wine was, it could only have been their sparkling burgundy. But Mazure did not have any pinot with which to make a sparkling burgundy, but Auldana had lots of shiraz.

But Symon was the one pouring the money into Auldana, and the 1893 political climate probably had relations between South Australia and Victoria at their nadir. The two colonies had waged a smouldering dispute for decades over the position of their common boundary. To give some idea of the complexity of the history and legal interpretations of the wrangle, when South Australian M.P. and lawyer George Ash spoke on the issue in the House of Assembly, the matter ran for 66 pages of Hansard, and his speech had to be twice adjourned. There were also problems relating to the border railway station at Serviceton, with the Adelaide Observer having this to say about the Victorian Government:

In fact their treatment of South Australia over this question could be such as to constitute a casus belli between hostile countries.

Symon obviously had no doubts about impending Federation, and with it the disappearance of the border customs posts. He would have grasped the opportunity to have Auldana poised to strike into new markets without delay, and after Federation, that is exactly what happened. Both Auldana and Great Western jostled for the market lead in Sydney.

Postulate two. It is doubtful if any quantity of sparkling red burgundy ever reached Australia before 1893, so that consumers and wine judges alike were probably oblivious to what the style was about. In 1893 The Australian Vigneron and Fruitgrower's Journal ran a series of listings of all the imported wines, beers and spirits available on the Sydney and Melbourne markets. The consumer of the day had a wide choice of champagne, and there were a few sparkling hocks on offer too, but no burgundy - not even a flat one!

In 1905 one could buy a sparkling red burgundy of apparently anonymous brand for the price of 70 shillings a case but only in Sydney. No such choice was available in Melbourne, despite being able to offer consumers a far wider range of French champagnes - 31 different brands!

Yet anyone who thought they knew anything about wine at that time had a good idea what colonial burgundy was about. Then surely the consumer expectation of a sparkling burgundy would be an effervescent version of the full-bodied and deep coloured red of which they were so familiar.

Postulate three presents itself more as a question, and that is whether Mazure himself was unclear about the style of the French sparkling red burgundy? We are not aware of a sparkling burgundy being produced at Clos Vougeot, and in any case Mazure's experience in France must have been quite limited.

Early tasting notes on sparkling burgundy, and most other wines for that matter, simply confined themselves to a declaration that the wine was good, or some similar description. This 1911 tasting note from Wine and Spirit News & Australian Vigneron goes into unusual length for the period.

The Cold Duck phenomenon hit Australia with its mass-produced product in the early 70s. Between 1971 and 1974 there were a number of trademark registrations, not only of Cold Duck, but also Cold Turkey, Chicken, Gander, and Stork. Mercifully the fad self-destroyed, but in the process very nearly took Australian sparkling burgundy with it.

I very recently overheard this conversation between two lady visitors to our cellar:
Cold Duck has become quite up-market now, and is being marketed as sparkling burgundy.

Decanter magazine in the U.K. offers the quotation from one Denzil Batchelor, that before the First World War sparkling red burgundy was a particular favourite of ladies of easy virtue and also of young girls who were inclined to wish that their own virtue was not quite so difficult.

Norm Waker recalls that during the 1950s, total production at Romalo Champagne Cellars was around 30-40,000 cases, which was two thirds champagne, and one third sparkling burgundy. The sparkling burgundies were quite sweet, and probably appealed to those who found champagne too sour.

It is not unusual to have visitors to the cellar who are not interested in wine, but merely sightseeing. I'd say that these two ladies were well into their sixties, and it was only after much deliberation that one of them decided that she would actually have a taste of one of the wines, and selected a shiraz blend. Oh, it tastes like a flat burgundy!

Only a year ago I was challenged by a veteran winemaker who had long experience in show judging, asking whether I was guilty of making one of those horribly sweet sparkling burgundies? To this day I do not know if he had an aversion to the style in general, or whether he had firm views about how far the addition of liqueur should proceed.

The style of sparkling burgundy produced now is drier than previously. Norm Walker recalls that in the 50s it was usual to liqueur at the rate of 42 grains of residual sugar per litre. Later they reduced the rate to 35 grains per litre. Most sparkling burgundies currently on the market have a residual sugar around 25 grams per litre, and compared to the champagne styles that is still quite sweet.

Norm Walker explains that it is necessary to have that sweetness to balance the tannins, particularly when die wine is served chilled, because tannins become quite aggressive on the palate at low temperatures.

One of our very first decisions relating to our new wine was that we would not follow most of the others in calling it 11 sparkling burgundy". Others had managed to avoid the issue by naming the wine as a variation of the grape variety, but it was agreed that "Sparkling Shiraz-Cabernet Malbec" was not a good idea.

The idea of using something distinctively Australian floated in; maybe "Sparkling Bonza" or "Sparkling Ned", but just as quickly they floated out again.

Hippocrene, according to the Shorter Oxford Dictionary, literally means 'the fountain of the horse', and was fabled to have been produced by a stroke of Pegasus' hoof; a fountain on Mount Helicon, sacred to the Muses; hence used allusively in reference to poetic inspiration.

The front label for our wine is taken from a steel engraving published in 1888, and an original hand tinted copy of which is in our collection. The illustration is of Auldana Vineyard.

This first release of our Hippocrene is the 1990 vintage, and predominantly shiraz, with lesser proportions of cabernet sauvignon and malbec. What surprised us, was that the proportions of these varieties were very close to the relative areas of the same varieties in the Auldana vineyard.

Tasting notes: colour is deep crimson with ruby on the edges. Nose shows spicy fruit, and just a hint of spirit lift as testimony that there is something more substantial to our liqueur d'expedition than just sugar water. The palate is plummy, but not over-ripe, with sweetness that gives a fullness of mouth-feel on the front palate. Spicy on the middle palate, and finishing with liquorice, aniseed, and blackberry flavours. Good length and finishes dry.

On the matter of price, it will cost more than our other wines because production costs are obviously much higher. I did a little comparison on prices and costs earlier this century. In 1912, a Barossa grower could expect f-4/17/6 for a ton of either cabernet sauvignon or shiraz, which would have been enough to buy 19 bottles of Hans Irvine's top sparkling burgundy.

Whilst 1993 grape prices are less defined, $750 would be a conservative figure, and using the same equation we should expect to pay around $39.40 for a bottle of good sparkling burgundy. But in 1912, the government didn't have its hand in the winemaker's pocket. To keep them quiet, that jumps the final figure to $52.

My introductory comments drew attention to the desirability of freeing ourselves from the European generic terminology for our wines. That merely echoes a sentiment that has prevailed in Australia for the 100 years that our sparkling burgundy has existed, yet we are still no closer to finding a new name for the style. The matter is now of increasing urgency, for only a few years remain before we will be prohibited from using the "burgundy" tag in Australia.

Had Smith or Irvine created the shiraz based sparkling burgundy, I would have considered that there may have been better names than Sparkling Smith or Sparkling Irvine, however if the Australian wine industry is serious about finding a new name for the style, I would suggest that there is an agreeable ring about Sparkling Mazure.

Finally, I've been drinking some of my Hippocrene, and find that I've become poetically inspired.

There are a number of places, within the text, where valuable information has been contributed, and is appropriately acknowledged. Many others have helped. Brian Miller and Don Hogben provided material on Keats. Michael Kluczko and Lesley Anne Grimoldby helped out on some early history of Great Western. Jack Reddin's archive under the stage at the Wayville showgrounds provided the wine show material. David Dunstan forwarded the material on Smith and D'Argent. Kit Stevens M.W. offered some thoughts on the early history of sparkling red burgundy. George Bell provided some early references.

And a special thankyou to Valmai Hankel and her ever-obliging staff at the State Library of South Australia; for enduring me for the last six months.

A set of references and research notes will be lodged with the Mortlock Library of South Australia.

This treatise was produced by The Wilson Vineyard at Polish Hill River. Permission is freely granted to reproduce any material contained herein, on the condition that acknowledgment of the source is prominently given. The winery is open for sales weekends, 1 0.00am to 4.30pm; weekdays 12 noon to 4.30pm. Smoking is not permitted. Coaches and minibuses accepted strictly by appointment. Sales cellar and toilet at the winery are assessable by the disabled. Postal address Is Box 11, Sevenhill S.A. 5453. Phone winery (088) 434310, or Adelaide Office (08) 2513294.

FACTS & FIGURES The Wilson Vineyard is a family-owned enterprise. The winery is regional in its approach, exclusively using grapes grown in the Polish Hill River sub-region of the Clare Valley. All vintage and cellaring processes up to the stage of bottling are carried out on the estate. Vineyard established 1974. First licensed 8 July 1980. Vineyard area; 7.75 ha. Aspect easterly. Soil; acidic red-brown clayey loam over decomposing slate. Average rainfall 700mm. Total land holding 6OHa. Average elevation 425m.