2024 Montalto Estate Pinot Gris, Mornington Peninsula

Montalto Estate Pinot Gris from the Mornington Peninsula is a beautifully textured and aromatic white wine that captures the richness and finesse this variety can offer when grown in cool, maritime conditions. A step up from the Pennon Hill bottling, the Estate Pinot Gris draws on older vines and more focused parcels, delivering a wine with greater depth, nuance and ageing potential, while still keeping that signature Montalto freshness.

Winemaker Simon Black gives this wine serious attention — wild ferment in old French oak, partial malolactic, and extended lees contact all contribute to a layered, savoury complexity. The result is not a crisp, neutral Gris, but something more generous and food-oriented. It’s a wine that leans stylistically toward Alsace, though with the lifted aromatics and bright acidity that are unmistakably Mornington.

In the glass, it shows poached pear, white peach, apple blossom and fennel seed, with background notes of almond meal and flint. The palate is dry, silky and gently rounded, with phenolic grip and chalky texture adding structure. A streak of acidity keeps it lively and focused through to a long, lightly spiced finish. It’s a Pinot Gris with quiet power and serious food compatibility.

Food pairing: Try it with roast pork and apple, scallops with cauliflower purée, grilled haloumi with pomegranate, or a mushroom and thyme tart. It also pairs beautifully with mild Indian or Thai dishes thanks to its texture and spice.

Cellar potential: Lovely now with a short decant but will develop further savoury complexity over 4–6 years.