WINES

All our wines are made from grapes grown here on the property, which are hand picked then processed, bottled and aged here at our on-site winery; they are true ‘single vineyard’ wines of the Upper Yarra Valley.

We are located in the Upper Yarra Valley, a region recognised for its high quality cool climate grapes and wines. Planted in 1994, our vines have been through their vigorous and erratic teenage years and are now nicely ‘balanced’, showing their stable character traits. At vintage, we retain a small parcel of fruit, chosen for its quality and flavour, to produce our own label. The remaining majority of our grapes are then sold to well known Yarra Valley producers, so you may well have enjoyed a drop of our wines already without even being aware.

The site of our Yarra Valley Vineyard was chosen specifically for its combination of climate, aspect and soil – essential for producing high quality fruit.  The spectacular views afforded across the valley floor to imposing Mount Donna Buang are in turn, essential for the other side of our business – hosting functions and special events.

Being in a north facing natural amphitheatre, the vineyard is sheltered from the prevailing westerly weather that contributes to the long mild autumns – ideal for the slow, even ripening required to produce grapes of elegant and complex flavour.

Look out for the following Bulong Estate wines next time you’re dining out – Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir,  Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Merlot and Cabernet Franc.  (Top tip – We have some of the oldest Pinot Gris vines in the Yarra Valley; well worth a sip when you get the chance).

Matt Carter is Chief Winemaker at Bulong Estate and draws on his extensive wine making experiences.  Matt has worked at well known Yarra Valley Wineries including Coldstream Hills and Yarra Ridge and for Hunter Valley winery James Estate.  He pursued his passion for Pinot Noir in one of the great Pinot Noir regions of the world, Oregon USA and worked with one of the best producers Adelsheim, learning all he could about perfecting the art of growing and making Pinot Noir.

Matt is now experiencing his 18th vintage at Bulong Estate, both managing the vineyard and making the wine.  His depth of knowledge of the terroir and his experience with the variations that can come with each vintage gives him a huge advantage to making great wine.  His knowledge and experience culminated in fantastic recognition in 2010 with the Trophy for the Best Sauvignon Blanc, Premium Classes, at the Dan Murphy’s National Wine Show of Australia.  In 2012 James Halliday recognised the overall quality of Bulong Estate wines with a 5 star rating and listed Bulong Estate as one of his “Dark Horses”.

When it comes to making wine Matt believes in the natural process and likes to let the fruit express itself with minimum intervention.  With that as his starting point, his primary focus is to grow the best possible fruit, so over the years he has made modifications to many of our vineyard blocks to finesse the fruit and he manages each variety and block according to their unique needs.

He uses the finest quality French oak both ‘new’ and ‘seasoned’, conducts all bottling on site with his winery team and seals our wines under screw cap, ensuring that the wine is kept in optimum condition.

We are in the fortunate position to have our winery on site, central to all our vines, so our hand-picked fruit is never far away.  During vintage, we handle small parcels of fruit at a time, keeping the parcels separate for as long as possible, assessing them for quality and subtle differences, before determining the final blends for bottling.

Fortunately for Matt, when he needs a bit of help in the vineyard or winery, the whole family live on the property, so are on hand to pitch in.