Chatto heading south

Hunter Valley winemaker Jim Chatto isn't old enough to recall the so-called 'Swinging 60s' that created the mini-skirt, the Mini Minor and the Frosted Mini Wheat. But talk with him today about the production of topnotch Pinot Noir and he'll tell you the principle of 'small is beautiful' is just as relevant today as it was 40 years ago.

The talented winemaker and show judge has been a fan of Grand Cru red Burgundy and cool-climate Pinot Noir for almost two decades. He says that's long enough to know almost all its quirks and character traits and realise that there are no shortcuts to success.

This is one grape variety where you really do have to be small to be beautiful.

That's the reason he's planning on moving from his present home in NSW's Hunter Valley and heading south into the heart of Tasmania's picturesque Huon Valley. He wants to pursue his passion for Pinot Noir by planting his own small-scale vineyard there.

Chatto fell in love with Tasmanian Pinot Noir not long after moving to the Tamar Valley to become winemaker at Rosevears Estate in 1998.

"I went from processing around 3,500 tonnes in the Hunter Valley to less than 150 tonnes in Tasmania," he recalls.

"Seeing all these small sites really opened my eyes to the potential for doing a lot of small-batch winemaking."

Chatto stayed two years with business owner Mike Beamish before heading off to resume his long and rewarding career in the Hunter Valley.

Back in May, he and his wife Daisy bought a 4ha green field site at Glaziers Bay. The Dillons Hill Road property is next door to Elsewhere and No Regrets vineyards.

Those neighbouring sites have remarkable wine show track records when it comes to Pinot Noir. The common factor is that both were first established and operated by Eric and Jette Phillips.

The couple began planting their beloved Elsewhere Vineyard back in 1984. 

Elsewhere Pinot Noirs won five Royal Hobart Wine Show trophies at the six events judged from 1991 to 1996. A trophy in Cowra and numerous gold medals in various other capital city shows underscore the Phillipses' astute choice of site.

Glaziers Bay may well have established an enviable reputation for consistency in wine quality, but the soils across the Elsewhere and No Regrets sites show surprising variability.

Permian in origin, they range from sandy silt or silty loam through to clayey silt and silty clay. Needless to say, there's also considerable variation from upper slopes to lower slopes.

The Chattos have already started planning for their vineyard's future.

"It's going to be a single vineyard planted exclusively to Pinot," Chatto explains as he pours a glass of the 2005 Chatto Pinot Noir he made last year from fruit bought in Tasmania.

"We'll be moving in tiny baby steps at first. Right now, I'm investigating some of the newer clones of Pinot, with the aim of planting five acres (2ha) in 2007. Eventually, we see ourselves moving down there permanently. Being a winemaker, that means I now have to jump into viticulture and learn all about growing good fruit.

"That's the key to making great Pinot Noir – keeping things small in scale and taking complete control over growing and making the wine. I know that it's a cliche, but after working in Tasmania – as well as buying grapes and making wines from down there – to really get things right with Pinot Noir you have to have complete control from the start by growing the fruit yourself.

"Good Pinot is extremely difficult to produce. The grapes themselves are pretty fussy about where they will do well, as the climate, soil type and vineyard aspect are more important for Pinot than for any other variety.

"The vines must be cropped very low to achieve good fruit concentration. Special care is required to guide the grapes to their full winemaking potential."

So why the Huon Valley, you ask the bloke who previously made Tamar Valley wines at Rosevears Estate?

"The longer, cooler growing seasons in the Huon give so much more aroma and flavour, even if you look at the stone fruits and cherries they grow down there," he says.

"There's certainly a big difference in taste when you compare them with what's being produced here on the mainland.

"Besides, I've always been a big fan of Michael Vishacki's stuff at Panorama, along with the wines at Elsewhere and No Regrets. When they get it right down there, they produce some of the best Pinot Noirs in the State.

"They also age magnificently."

First published 27 September 2006: The Examiner

Last page update: 22 September 2026