OUR APPROACH
History
Est. 1985, Paternoster is the founding commercial winery in the Cardinia Ranges with vines planted on this scenic and steep site, 300m above sea level, over the years 1984 to 1985.
The vineyard sits amongst the genuinely cool, rolling hills of Emerald, on the lower south-east side of the Blue Dandenongs.
Location
Emerald enjoys a beautiful microclimate ideally suited to cool-climate viticulture – a key factor in producing grapes of the highest qualities. The site was carefully selected for its deep, free draining, rusty-red soils, mild summers and lingering, humid autumns, creating ideal conditions for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Grown in this environment, the wines develop a long, silky texture and layered complexity, with beautifully perfumed, sweet fruit aromas at their core, while staying crisp and dry on the palate.
All Organic
The vineyard is non-irrigated and entirely free from insecticides and fertilizers. Densely planted vines (2000 per acre) receive meticulous hand attention throughout the season – from pruning and canopy management to harvesting. Cropping levels are kept strictly between 1-1.5 tonnes per acre, compared with the 4 or more tonnes per acre often harvested by commercial wineries. With a total vineyard area of just 5 acres, the focus remains firmly on producing small quantities of exclusive, premium-quality wines.
Our wine making philosophy
Making truely good wine is an art that requires passion, dedication and respect for the craft, but it also relies on careful, knowledgeable practices in both the vineyard and the cellar.
A wine can only be as good as the fruit it is made from. The foundation of premium wine is laid in the vineyard by growing exceptional grapes under the best possible conditions. At Paternoster we are fortunate to benefit from an outstanding terroir, as the French call it. The well-aerated, south-facing slope of the vineyard allows for slow ripening in a cool climate – a key factor in developing concentrated flavour and aroma in the grapes. Natural growing conditions, together with gentle handling during harvest and throughout the winemaking process, ensure that these delicate aromas are preserved.
Our Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are crushed slowly and gently. Pinot undergoes traditional manual pigéage, with no pumping over, to preserve the purity and texture of the fruit. Pressing for both varieties is slow and carefully controlled, while the Chardonnay juice goes directly into cool, temperature-controlled barrel-fermentation. The wines are then aged for an extended period in French oak barrels with minimal racking, allowing them to develop complexity and structure. All wines receive oak maturation and are bottled without fining; only the Chardonnay receives a delicate polishing filter.
At Paternoster, however, winemaking is not only an art — it is also a science. A deep understanding of cellar techniques is essential to crafting wines that are both richly flavoured and capable of aging gracefully. Equipped with small laboratory facilities, we regularly analyse our wines throughout fermentation, carefully monitoring their development while allowing their natural character to unfold.
At the same time, the art of winemaking requires intuition — a sixth sense that helps reveal the full potential of the grapes as they transform into remarkable wines. Only through this careful attention to detail can wines with beautiful texture, great length and deep flavour be created.
Taste Profiles of Paternoster:
With four decades of winemaking experience, the hallmark qualities for Paternoster wines are:
Purity of site
Purity of fruit
Excellent oak balance
Clean, long-flavoured wines with a powerful yet succulent texture.
Our Pinots display classic note of ripe plum, dark cherry, violets, supported by soft, beautifully integrated oak.
Our Chardonnays show fresh, light tropical fruit and subtle minerality in their youth, evolving with age to reveal honeyed, nutty complexity and finely integrated oak.
The vineyard site provides an excellent balance of natural acidity — the backbone of great wine and essential for longevity. Under proper cellaring conditions, the wines can mature for more than 15 years.
The Paternoster classification comprises three quality levels, each expressing the distinctive character of the vineyard from which it is grown:
Premium: Classically Full Flavoured
Jack of Hearts: Reserve, Intense with Satin Texture
Heaven’s Door: Prestigious, Concentrated, Powerful
Oak Usage
At Paternoster we use exclusively French oak, chosen for its soft and refined aroma it contributes to the wines.
American oak may offer an initial sweetness, but it frequently leaves a hard, bitter and aggressive finish! Around here, American oak does not make it past the front gate.
Some technical notes
Mercaptans and Sulfides
In recent years, some winemaking styles have deliberately emphasised there is a sulphur-derived aromas associated with organic compounds known as mercaptans. Mercaptans are formed in wine through the reactions between hydrogen sulphide (=H2S) and other wine components such as ethanol. In higher concentrations they are recognisable by the smell of sewer-gas, spoiled vegetables or rotten eggs. Because mercaptans have an extremely low sensory threshold, even small amounts can produce noticeable aromas of struck match, onion, burnt rubber, or septic, skunk-like odours.
At Paternoster, we view this trend critical. As a good friend once remarked, “mercaptans are a toxin, not a flavour profile”. In certain contexts, a small degree of reductive character may contribute positively to the flavour structure of a Chardonnay. However, when present in excess the balance of the wine is compromised and become unpleasantly dominant.
Historically, such characters were considered a winemaking fault. Careful fermentation management remains the most effective way to prevent excessive formation of hydrogen sulphide and related compounds.
For further reading:
https://www.internationalwinechallenge.com/Canopy-Articles/struck-match-in-chardonnay-whats-it-all-about.html
http://www.wineanorak.com/mercaptansinwine.htm
Bottle Closures
The majority of Australian wine producers now use screw caps, which are convenient and reliable closures. However, screw caps create an almost completely airtight seal, preventing the gradual passage of oxygen into the bottle.
Natural cork, by contrast, allows minute amounts of oxygen to enter the bottle over time, enabling the wine to mature and develop complexity. Cork closures are not without their challenges — excessive oxygen ingress can lead to oxidation, and cork contamination may introduce compounds that alter the purity of the wine.
Paternoster Wines has always used cork. In the early 2000s we were introduced to Procork by Dr. Gregor Christie, the Australian researcher, inventor and co-owner of the company. Procork is a natural cork fitted with extremely thin, transparent membranes on both ends. These membranes allow oxygen to pass through at a consistent rate while preventing contaminants — including the chemical compound TCA, responsible for the “cork-taint” aroma of mouldy, wet cardboard. Two independent trails conducted by the Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) have shown that coated corks closures can outperform both traditional natural cork and screw caps.
Procork closures are more expensive than conventional solutions, but at Paternoster we value their ability to protect the integrity of our wines, while allowing them to mature naturally. Since 2005, all Paternoster Wines have been sealed with this technology.
Further Reading:
https://www.procorktech.com/technical-science
WineWisdom: Sally Easton MW
http://www.winewisdom.com/articles/closures/cork-stoppers-with-extra-membrane/
Cork & Wine Blog | T & C Margo
http://www.tcmargo.com/Blog/procork-the-unique-absolute-shield-against-cork-taint-and-undesirable-smells-from-any-source