Foate's Ridge is a boutique vineyard at Broke Fordwich in the Hunter Valley producing
Merlot,
Chardonnay,
Cabernet Sauvignon and
Verdelho
medal winning wines that exhibit distinctive regional flavours.The wines are exclusive and cannot be purchased from liquor stores.
To check our range and prices, or for an Order Form, click here
Current Releases
The 2008 Verdelho was bottled on the 21 July 2008. The winemaker,
Cameron, and I believe it is in the same class as the 2007 and very much a
continuation of the Foate's Ridge style that we have come to expect from that
block of vines. The wine was awarded a Bronze Medal at the Hunter Valley Wine Show.
With the realities of the market chewing at our preconception
of what our customers really think, we have decided to introduce a range of
budget price quality wine. Now on stage is our new Monte Michel
range. We bottled a Chardonnay, the first for 7 years, a
Verdelho, on 21 July 2008 and a Merlot. Each wine is made from the same fruit as our Foate's Ridge wines. The
Verdelho has plenty of flavour and has been adjusted to suit the quaffing
palate. The Chardonnay is full flavoured and has light wood treatment to meet
the expectation of the regular Chardonnay imbiber. The Merlot is a lighter style and is particularly easy drinking.
We are still selling our Meat Eaters Pack, each case containing 6 bottles
each of the 2003 and 2007 vintage Merlot. Both vintages are
medal winners.
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The Verdelho is undergoing renovation. The lower cordons are being replaced. The top cordons will be next. On the right, the oldest Chardonnay plants have had the tops renewed.
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The winter frosts are an essential part of the vines well being - they need to sleep during winter.
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We are lucky! The Wollombi Brook (we have a 1km frontage on the waterway) is running. Not always the case.
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Our 2007 Merlot has been bottled and is ready for early drinking. I am
decidely impressed with the fruit flavours and personally, stand it beside our
Silver Medal winning 2003 Merlot. At home, this is the wine we pick to have with
a steak.
Our double Gold Medal Verdelho is finished.
We still have stocks of the 2003 Merlot which is maturing into a very enjoyable wine.
Vineyard Affairs
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We have finished our winter pruning job. Pruning is a time-consuming,
labour-intensive and expensive operation. With 20,000 vines to be given
individual pruning attention, the task is no small challenge. We start the
process with a machine pre-prune. This is an operation using a tractor-mounted
set a cutters that cut off most of the excess canes, leaving the hand-prunner
the job of tidying up, without the need to remove the long canes by hand.
Further work has been done in the Chardonnay and Verdelho blocks to remove
old and tired cordons, replacing them with new canes that will form the basis of
the spurs that will produce shoots for fruit over the next few years.
We have started to replace the cordons in the Verdelho. You can see the new
canes on the lower fruit wire. The upper cordon is showing its age and will need
to be replaced in the next few years.
The other important task is to ensure there is plenty of moisture in the
ground, particularly in the sub-soil. This is important to ensure we have a good
budburst next month.
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Hunter Valley Boutique Wines - the perfect gift ..
Unlike commercial wines, Foate's Ridge wines are exclusive and are not sold through
liquor chains. Our hand-crafted red wines have been matured in top-quality
French Oak, allowing their subtle but distinctive fruit flavours to develop.
This commitment to quality ensures that our wines will impress in the best company,
and provide a unique edge to your corporate entertaining.
Whether it be a pre-dinner aperitif, or accompanying a fine meal, there is a
Foate's Ridge wine to suit every style of cuisine.
My Wine Cellar
Check out our Wine
Cellar program. This allows you to keep track of your wine in your cellar, and
to record and analyse usages.
Look forward to
hearing from you.
The Foate's Ridge Team
