Gourmet Traveller WINE Winemaker of the Year winner 2011: Ed Carr, House of Arras

 

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For the 25 years that Carr has been involved in sparkling winemaking he has been the country’s master blender, the incomparable bubbly producer against whose achievements all others have been judged. The sheer weight of sparkling wine trophies that he has garnered from the Australian show system defies belief and comparison. His most recent achievement is his most amazing. He has transformed grapes from southern Tasmania into vintage bubblies (under the House of Arras EJ Carr label) that are disgorged after 10 years on lees yet retain a freshness and vibrance that suggest youth rather than maturity, possess the depth of flavour, finesse and complexity for them to sell at the price of deluxe Champagnes, and have the critics gasping for superlatives.

Carr began his career as a microbiologist in 1977 in the laboratory of Wynn Winegrowers at Magill. He became more involved in the physical side of producing bubbly and, in 1986, was appointed sparkling winemaker for Seaview and Killawarra at Nuriootpa. He had reservations about Southcorp’s decision to consolidate its sparkling wine production at Great Western and wasn’t keen to live there, so an offer from BRL Hardy to head up the proposed expansion of its sparkling wine division was timely.

This expansion began with the non-varietal River-land blend, Hardys Grand Cuvée, and Hardys Sir James which garnered popularity at 10 times the anticipated pace. He wanted to move towards the use of the classic Champagne varieties, chardonnay and pinot noir, with Riverland bubblies, something which was not common at the time. The launch of Omni and then Banrock Station provided this opportunity. The purchase of the Hoddles Creek vineyard in 1994 gave Hardys access to its cool-climate fruit and within a few years the company had committed to the Yarra Burn brand. The purchase of the Kambera winery gave them access to fruit from the Canberra region and Tumbarumba, and lead to the establishment of the highly successful Sir James Tumbarumba label. This interest in cool-climate sparkling wines led to other regional products, Wisdom from Pemberton and Starvedog Lane from the Adelaide Hills.

The move to Tasmania has arguably turned Carr from a superstar to a colossus. His finest made from outside Tasmania are first-rate Australian sparkling wines, while the best he’s made from the chill of the island’s south are world-class bubblies of power, elegance and finesse. He bought his first fruit from Tasmania in 1995, pressed it under contract, and released it under the Arras label in time for the millennium.

As his confidence grew, more sparkling wine was produced. The breakthrough came with the purchase of the Bay of Fires vineyard and winery in 2001. This gave them an important source of fruit and control over their own winemaking. A key figure in much of Carr’s winemaking at Hardys has been viticulturist, Ray Guerin, whose cold-climate viticultural knowledge, Carr believes, would be hard to match. His practical know-how has enabled him to guide growers and turn competent horticulturists into good grape growers in Tumbarumba, the Yarra Valley, and Tasmania.

A key to the success of the Arras wines has been the house style that has evolved under Carr. For the EJ Carr wines, he has turned to the southern Tasmanian vineyard in the belief that finer, more elegant drops need ultra-cold climate and the chardonnay grape. A low sulfur regime is used giving the wines a slightly oxidative character. One hundred per cent goes through the malolactic fermentation thus reining in the powerful natural acidity. To keep them pristine, the wines are fined hard; and oak is used to build structure and complexity, without imparting oak character. There’s a consistency about the first three vintages (1998, 1999, 2000) of the House of Arras EJ Carr Late Disgorged: a brightness and a remarkable youthful zest; complex quartzy, shaly minerality and long, dry finishes that harness retrained natural acidity. These give an added dimension to Australian sparkling wine production.

In playing the dominant role in his specialist segment of the industry, Ed Carr laid an admirable foundation for his most recent success. For the range of possibilities he has shown with Tasmanian fizz, he is a most deserved winner of the 2011 Gourmet Traveller WINE Australian Winemaker of the Year.

TEXT PETER FORRESTAL PHOTOGRAPHY HOUSE OF ARRAS

This article is from the October/November 2011 issue of Gourmet Traveller WINE.