Winery & Vintage Info
Pooley Wines was first established in 1985 when Denis and Margaret Pooley planted vines on the banks of the Coal River in southern Tasmania. With seven rows of Pinot Noir and ten rows of Riesling planted on their 16-hectare farm at Cooinda Vale as a retirement plan, Denis and Margaret found a renewed vigour for life. A vineyard that started as nothing more than a distraction for Denis and Margaret soon flourished into a renowned premium cool-climate site.
With the help of their son and grandchildren, three generations of the Pooley family have continued to bring meticulous care to their Cooinda Vale vineyard. In 1989, Cooinda Vale’s unique microclimate and terroir yielded its first vintage with the quality and consistency of fruit, speaking to Margaret and Denis’s love and dedication shown to their property. Denis continued working in the vineyard until his passing in 1994.
In 2003, John Pooley and his wife Libby bought Belmont, a heritage-listed Georgian home on the outskirts of Richmond. Pooley Wines expanded their estate and established a second vineyard, Butcher’s Hill, with its first vintage produced in 2007.
Until the passing of Margaret Pooley in 2010, three generations of the Pooley family were working in the vineyards with John’s son, Matthew Pooley, taking on the responsibility as Viticulturist. With Margaret’s granddaughter, Anna Pooley returning to the family business in 2013, Pooley was made entirely by family hands from this point onward.
The season started with consistent spring rainfall that built a solid foundation with strong, healthy canopies and bountiful bunch numbers. Mild conditions continued through to summer with few days reaching over 25˚C. The start of Autumn provided glorious sunshine days and cool oceanic evenings hailing the start of veraison. The vacant heat returned shortly thereafter to kickstart what would be a long and late vintage. The fruit was in absolutely no rush to be picked and showed its relaxed appreciation through integrated and balanced phenolic profiles.
Fruit sourced from Butcher’s Hill, Cooinda Vale and select vineyards from the Coal River Valley. A blend of Cooinda Vale and Butcher’s Hill with the addition of some smaller parcels of selected growers within the Coal River Valley. Wild fermentation (5% whole bunch) over 14 days then 7-day post ferment maceration. Fermentation took place in 2.5-tonne open ferment stainless steel with pumping over once per day. Matured for 11 months in French oak (10% New). A mixture of (90%) puncheons (500L) with a small portion matured in (10%) barriques (225L).
