Vintner offers Hope to counter Australia’s blends

In today’s extreme international competition among wine producers, Australia has stayed at the forefront by keeping costs low with the widespread use of automated technology, both in the vineyard and winery.

At the same time, large Aussie wine companies and most midsize firms have pursued a benchmark style of fruit-driven, approachable wines that many consumers adore.

This successful formula is impressive, but it comes at a price. Most Australian wines are regional blends designed to deliver uniform, concentrated fruit flavors rather than expressions of the distinct characteristics of specific vineyards and regions. Regrettably, then, consumers miss the opportunity of tasting a variety and diversity of flavors from unique regions.

One of the exceptions to this general style is Hope Estate Vineyards of the Hunter Valley. Owner Michael Hope recently visited Pittsburgh as part of a nationwide tour to promote his relatively new winery, founded in 1994.

Hope met with me and sommelier Phil Real, who manages the Prelude Wine Bar at the Downtown Renaissance Hotel, to discuss wine and taste the winery’s latest releases.

Like many winery owners who successfully pursued prior careers, Hope owned pharmacies before moving to the rural Broke Fordwich subregion north of Sydney to grow grapes, make wine and raise his family. He purchased and refitted a long-dormant winery and bought existing vineyards planted with verdelho and chardonnay for whites, and merlot and shiraz for reds.

His goal was — and remains — to make “nice, feel-good, lifestyle wines that everybody can enjoy,” but, unlike other vintners who produce on a large scale, Hope also committed to making wines solely from grapes grown on his estates so they could reflect the area’s distinct growing conditions.

His limited production puts Hope Estate in the “boutique” class, yet the prices are quite reasonable — in true Australian fashion.

Hope is a passionate, knowledgeable and “hands-on” winery owner with an excellent lineup. The wines exhibit a more restrained and understated Hunter Valley style as opposed to the national benchmark style.

As a group, the bottlings have impressive depth and complexity, and they reflect how well a dedicated winemaking team can do in the Hunter Valley. Hope is assisted by Neil Orton, viticulture manager, and Joshua Steele, winemaker.

Although it takes a extra effort to purchase these wines — they are Special Liquor Orders — you should seek them out.