Perth Woman went in search of a brilliant white wine. Oakover Chief Winemaker Rob Marshall has informed us that brilliance is merely a point of view…
After speaking with Rob Marshall for more than a few minutes, you immediately get the feeling that you are speaking to a voice of authority in winemaking and tasting. And when that voice tells you to enjoy wine, you listen. “One of the things about making a brilliant wine is that brilliance is a point of view. Brilliant wine is its point of view from a person,” says Rob.
“The most important thing about drinking wine is for people to realise that it’s not scary and that there is no right or wrong. If you want to drink a chardonnay with a big steak – go right ahead and do it because it may work, it may not but unless you try it you’re not going to find out. If you want to have a petit verdot with a piece of fish go ahead and do it because there is no right or wrong."
“Wine is very subjective and you could line a hundred people up and get a hundred different comments about the wine - the most important thing about being a winemaker is being able to produce a wine that gets a hundred good comments out of it rather than a wine that is only going to target fifty of those people.”
Brillance in winemaking
Rob Marshall explains how Oakover produces award-winning wines:
“The important thing with our technology is that we’re adaptable. Growing fruit is obviously primary production, so you’re very reliant on the climate, on the soils, on your area, what goes on, what happens, with disease, water etc. And so on the technical side of it, what we need to be is adaptable because quite often we’ll be delivered a product which from year to year is different but we have to produce a product that is similar."
“That’s where the winemaking comes into it. You can be technically correct every year with the wine, in terms of ph and acid levels, etc. but the wine will taste completely different. It’s about the blending of the classic white, for example, and the proportions you put in the blend… one year you might have to make the wine completely differently. So it’s about being adaptable in the winery, in the laboratory.”
Rob Marshall
Chief winemaker Rob Marshall has worked tirelessly for the last five years to establish Oakover as a premier winery. With a background in sheep and wheat, the last thing you would imagine an ex-farmer from Victoria to be doing is creating world-class chardonnays and winning a string of national awards. But by mixing his two passions - science and art, Rob has won over 150 medals in various state and national wine shows during his tenure at Oakover.
In 2002 Rob was appointed general manager and chief winemaker. Gleaning heavily from his farming experience, Rob credits his success at Oakover to thinking outside of the box. “The one thing I learnt to do – is do the opposite to what your neighbours are doing. That’s been my philosophy.”
And the opposite was to realise quickly that wine is a subjective product. “It’s very personal, people can attach themselves to a wine or winery,” Rob states knowledgeably, and it was this realisation that helped Rob turn Oakover’s fortunes around, by establishing a strong bond between wine and customer.
The Collection - Estate Wines
(for a more adventurous palette…)
Carnelian
Described as a ‘hot climate Cabernet Sauvignon’ this wine has intense gamey and savoury aromas. Medium-bodied palate with sweet, ripe brambly fruit flavours and soft juicy tannins. Quaff some Carnelian with friends over catch up chit chat.
Malbec
Vanilla perfume aroma with dollops of strawberries and cream. Fleshy fruit flavours are layered over a velvety texture. Serve chilled and drink overlooking the lake in summer.
Petit Verdot
Dark, powerful and mysterious with immense colour. Deep blood red with a purple hue, this wine oozes intense aromas of black fruit and spicy smoke. The palate is rich with blackberry pie and black cherries. Curl up with this sumptuous red in front of the fire.
Chardonnay
Both the aroma and palate hint at pineapple and biscuits with an alluring nutty depth. Full-bodied with round and creamy flavours it makes for a refreshing pre-dinner, dinner, and post-dinner drink!
Oakover
Oakover Wines is a family-operated, boutique winery located in the heart of the Swan Valley. Established in the 1830s, it was one of the original properties cleared by convict labour and has three generations of Swan Valley heritage behind it. In 1990 the Yukich family acquired the estate off Houghton and since then, Mark Yukich and sons Graeme and Kim continue to blend past and present by growing quality grapes and producing premium wine.
Now boasting a restaurant, shop-come-art-gallery, beautiful grounds, a lake and function areas suitable for stunning outdoor weddings, Oakover winery has come a long way from its humble beginnings.
The Valley
The Swan Valley district is only twenty minutes drive out of Perth City, but is one of Western Australia’s oldest wine growing regions.Tall trees, granite outcrops and rambling countryside define the landscape and 40 or so wineries dot the vista, many of which are still run by descendants of families who originally came from Europe. The Swan Valley is undoubtedly one of WA’s most popular wine areas and Rob Marshall explains why. “In terms of producing wine like the classic white – it just does it so terrifically… because it’s so consistent.”
The Valley now offers a range of attractions to suit every taste and palette, including the chocolate and nougat factory, boutique breweries, sumptuous restaurants nestled inside wineries, art galleries and rustic as well as world-class accommodation.
The Classic
A classic can usually be defined as something that stands the test of time. Oakover define their classic white as something which over-delivers on quality. Described as an accessible wine, one that can be enjoyed on a quiet night in with friends, it boasts no less than six separate awards and is a blend of three popular grape varieties; chardonnay, verdelho and chenin blanc.
Outselling every other bottle to date, it has been such a success that Rob refers to it as one of their ‘two-bottle wines’ because you basically have drunk the first one and you’re on the second one before you know it.
It’s enjoyable. It’s uncomplicated. It’s easy drinking and as chief winemaker Rob Marshall states – “it’s the drinkability that makes it important.”
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