Many wine-lovers find that they can enjoy Treeton Estate wines without the headaches and hayfever-like reactions that they find with some other wines.

David McGowan, our vigneron and winemaker, uses a combination of clean, green, traditional techniques and modern advances to hand craft his wines using sulphur as the only antioxidant preservative.

David’s philosophy and approach to winemaking is to grow premium fruit and then to allow grape quality and terroir to define the character of his wines.  Using optimum vineyard management and a scrupulously clean and cool processing environment removes the need for additives.

Specially designed pruning and foliage management techniques, natural fertilisers and early use of low concentration sulphur sprays, control the development of natural yeasts and fungus.  David thereby limits the need for other control techniques, while still producing first-rate fruit.

Modern machine harvesters are used as they are clean and fast, allowing the fruit to be picked at or before sunrise while the grapes are still cool from the cold night air.

David pays close attention to using tanks and equipment which are meticulously  cleaned and where temperatures are tightly controlled.

After fermentation is complete, the wines are first treated with naturally-occurring clay (bentonite) to remove unwanted grape proteins. Inorganic compounds such as tartrates are then removed by reducing the temperature of the wine to below zero.  Modern filtration techniques are used to polish the wine without risking the introduction of contaminants.

No milk, egg, fish, nut or animal products are used in Treeton Estate’s wine production process – avoiding the risks of allergic reaction that these products can create for some individuals.

This clean, green approach could be the reason that many people find they can enjoy Treeton Estate wines without allergenic after effects.

Over the weekend of July 17-18, visitors had a chance to view the bottling of Treeton Estate’s  2009 vintage reds and 2010 vintage white and rose wines.  The showery weather did not interfere with a highly successful operation.  Many thanks to everyone, as the winery team supported the highly efficient Maurice Lay and Peter Laslett from MAP On-Estate Bottling Services.

The vintage 2009 reds have responded superbly to the new American oak barrels that we provided this vintage.  The Cabernet Sauvignon is tasting rich beyond its age but unfortunately, the limited volume will restrict distribution of this already beautiful wine.

In addition to our usual Shiraz release, we have responded to growing interest in single vineyard wines by crafting a wine from grapes sourced entirely from the 24 year old vines in our Valley Block.  We look forward to feedback on this stunning new wine after it is released in 2011.

Treeton Estate’  2010 vintage whites are the unwooded Chardonnay and the Sauvignon Blanc Semillon (SBS) blend that won so many converts with the 2009 release.  David is very excited about the Chardonnay – watch this space!

We have used the 11-year old Shiraz grapes from the Park Block for the 2010 Veronica (rose) – photo above.   We look forward to offering you a taste of the new version of this very popular wine.

Rod selected a mixed case of the 2007 Shiraz and 2009 Sauvignon Blanc Semillon as his prize. When asked why he signed up to the Treeton Estate email list, Rod said:

I’ve been trekking down to the Margaret River Wine Region for years and have made a point of looking for the slightly out of the way places and smaller wineries rather than the big ‘commercial’ wineries. I’m definitely not a wine connoisseur, just an average person who knows what he likes in wines. My favourites are SSBs, Shiraz and Cab Savs hence the choice from your range.

My first taste of Treeton Estate wines was way back in the early ‘90s on a trip to Molloy Island with friends. We turned off the beaten track and found this little winery with a dog that performed tricks and a very friendly bunch of people who insisted we try their wines. I’ve been buying Treeton Wines ever since (not regularly mind you, but pretty well every time I get to Margaret River). I think it’s probably the personal touch that makes the wines so good as opposed to the mass-produced feel of the bigger wineries.

Thank you Rod for such a great story.

We look forward to pulling another winner from our email list in three months time.

The Treeton Estate vineyards have been harvested and wine production is well on track.   David considers this to be our best vintage of the last 5 years and we are feeling confident of some wonderful 2010 wines.

Our white grapes were harvested between 3 and 11 March. Crushed and pressed, these beautiful grapes are now undergoing fermentation to produce a Sauvignon Blanc Semillon and an Unwooded Chardonnay. The wines will be released towards September.

Our red grapes were harvested on 21 March. This year, these fabulous grapes followed two paths.

• The 12-year old vine Shiraz grapes were crushed and held overnight before a light pressing.  This lightest of pink must  is now under fermentation to produce a classic Shiraz rosé.  The wine will be released in 2010 under our Veronica label
• The  24-year old vine Shiraz grapes are destined to produce a single-vineyard wine that will be held on oak and cellared before release.  Our 2009 vintage will be the first release of this new premium line.
• In line with previous years, we will be producing a small volume of our well-respected 100% Cabernet Sauvignon.

We look forward to sharing these wines with you as they develop the complex characteristics that our beautiful grapes provide.

This River Class Frigate Destroyer Escort was commissioned into the Royal Austalian Navy on 2o January 1970.  After 26 years in service, she nows sits on the sandy bottom in 30 metres of water just off of Point Piquet at Meelup.

The two divers relaxed and enjoyed the Treeton Estate white and red wines.   A perfect way to end a fantastic diving experience.

David’s careful charting of Baume levels for each grape variety in our vineyard allows him to predict – with some margin for error – when to lock in the harvest.  With the countdown now measured in days for the whites, our grapes are looking gorgeous.

This is the time when all  the paraphernalia of the vintage – the tractors, bins, crusher, press, pumps, hoses and refrigeration – need to be meticulously clean, carefully checked and working perfectly.

The contractors and friends of the winery must be booked and ready to go on the day.

Dealing with nature, we know that things can go wrong.  So we wait patiently and are hopeful of a great vintage.

john

To thank for your continuing interest in receiving news on special offers and our vintages, we are starting a quarterly draw, with free entry to our email list members.

The prize will be a carton of Treeton Estate wines, selected by the winner and delivered free within Australia.

Winners will be contacted to select their wines and to provide delivery instructions. We apologise to our overseas subscribers for restricting entry to those with an Australian delivery address.

If you think any of your friends or family would be interested, this is a great time to suggest that they join up.  Just ask them to enter their name and email address in the simple form at the top of the side-bar to the right.  They will then receive an invitation from us via Aweber – a service that we use to guarantee information security for our subscribers.

Please contact John at Treeton Estate if you have any queries regarding this email.

Over the first two weeks of January 2010, an unusual series of days over 40 degree Centigrade caused significant problems for some  grape growers in the Margaret River Wine Region.

Throughout the growing season at Treeton Estate , we carefully manage the vine canopy to minimise both problems with predatory birds and the risk of heat exposure to the young grapes.   While somewhat reducing total grape yield, this strategy has allowed our vineyards to come through the recent heat wave without damage to the young grapes (photo of the Chardonnay above).

The 2010 vintage is shaping up  to be another good one for ‘the cool heart of Margaret River‘.

This year, the warmer weather will allow us to harvest earlier than in 2009, but still well within the usual range of recent historical vintages.  We look forward to sharing the results with you as the whites are released mid-year

For a limited period, we are offering the Christmas Box at a special discount price.

In addition to our regular price for online sales of 15% discount and free delivery to anywhere in Australia, we are offering an additional 10% discount for the Christmas Box at $171 per case ($14.25 per bottle).

The Christmas Box contains:

• 2 bottles of the 2009 Unwooded Chardonnay (Best of Class at the 2009 Qantas Mt Barker Wine Show)
• 2 bottles of the 2009 Sauvignon Blanc Semillon (Bronze medals at the Rutherglen and National Cool Climate Wine Shows)
• 2 bottles of the 2009 Chenin Blanc (Silver medal and Best in Class at the National Cool Climate Wine Show)
• 1 bottle of the 2008 Veronica Rose. Perfect for that lunchtime picnic
• 1 bottle of the Special Blend port. Perfect with cheese at the end of your holday dinner
• 2 bottles of the 2007 Shiraz (Bronze medal in the 2009 Visy Great Australian Shiraz Challenge)
• 2 bottle s of the 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon (Bronze medals at the Cowra, Cairns and Australian Small Winemakers Shows in 2008)

The Christmas Box can be bought online or ordered by mail, fax or phone using the special order form.

The offer is open until December 31, subject to availability.

Smooth and fresh, with a bouquet of oak mulberries and spice, this wine is drinking beautifully.  Buy now before the price goes up when we release the 2008 vintage.