Blue Pyrenees Estate has introduced a new range of multi-regional varietal blends under the Leydens Vale label. Fitting neatly between the single-vineyard Blue Pyrenees Estate range of chardonnay, sparkling wines, dry red blend and the price-fighting Fiddlers Creek wines, Leydens Vale offers premium wine quality at a very competitive price point between $15 and $18. Named after John Leydens, one of the original landholders of what has become the Blue Pyrenees property, the Leydens Vale range comprises a Riesling, a Shiraz, a Pinot Noir and will be extended with a Merlot in March. The regional mix is a result of much research undertaken by Vincent Gere and his team at Blue Pyrenees to source from top quality growers in some of the country’s better and more diverse wine regions. For Riesling they chose the Yarra Valley and Mount Barker; for Pinot Noir the Yarra Valley, the Mornington Peninsula, the King Valley and the Pyrenees; for Shiraz the Pyrenees and Central Victoria and for Merlot the Pyrenees and Pemberton (WA). Blue Pyrenees winemakers have developed relationships with growers and winemakers in these regions to make the wines, which are then blended at Blue Pyrenees Estate. Vincent Gere says the varieties have been selected carefully to integrate with the company’s existing folio. ‘The ranges don’t conflict, the varieties don’t fight and the portfolio is logical and complete’, he says. Although I have yet to formally taste the wines, I have been pleased with the passing impressions I have made. At $15 and above, they’re likely to win many friends.
