Red, red wine, stay close to me

Wine Geelong will present its second instalment of the wildly popular “A Pinot Affair” this weekend, with event organisers gearing up to showcase the world-class selection of Pinot Noir from the Bellarine Peninsula, Surf Coast and Moorabool Valley.

Locked in for this Saturday May 25 at Geelong’s buzzing West End precinct in Little Malop Street, more than 22 local wine producers will offer their varieties to red wine enthusiasts across the oneday celebration.

March Nickolich, winemaker at Mt Duneed Estate from the Surf Coast region, said Mt Duneed Estate will showcase its entire range of Pinot Noir for the festival, along with its latest release of Geelong Pinot which will be showcased at the event.

“Some people say all other reds are a gateway wine leading to Pinot Noir. The beauty of it is that when grown in the right areas and shown the right amount of care, it can be utterly sublime,” he said.

Oakdene Estate winemaker Steven Paul said he considered Pinot Noir to be the most important grape variety in the Geelong region.

“Geelong Pinot Noir is generally typified by deep colour, earthy characters, and firm but fine tannin structured. We have a mix of four different clones of Pinot Noir in our vineyard which perform quite differently each season and offer individual characters to our wine,” Mr Paul said.

“Our single vineyard Peta’s Pinot Noir is refermented with the inclusion of a portion of whole bunches. This adds complexity, a stemmy perfume, and additional natural tannin to the wine.”

The event will be held this Saturday May 25 from 12pm until 5pm. Live music and catering by Truffleduck will delight guests. There are limited tickets and each ticketholder will receive a commemorative Wine Geelong glass as well as unlimited Pinot Noir tastings.

Wine can be purchased by the glass, with take-home bottles on offer at an additional cost.

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit pinotaffair.com.au.