Sixty-Second Swirl by Brent Lello, Yass Valley Wine Columnist
Situated at the southern end of Dog Trap Road is the family-owned winery operation – Gallagher Wines. Greg has been around the winemaking traps for decades, making wine all over Australia and across the globe, and together with daughter Lauren, wave their winemaking wand at classical varieties, producing wines of high quality and cool climate elegance. Recently, the family matriarch and blessed cheesemaker – Libby – passed away but will be long remembered for her fine cheeses that had a canny knack for combining superbly with the stable of Gallagher wines. Jansel, the Gallagher’s daughter-in-law, worked with Libby and has taken the mantle of Cheesemaker, lovingly matching wines with cheese and pickles.
Libby’s labneh was always exceptional and the creamy texture and tangy taste would be a right cracker with the subject of this week’s “swirl” – the Gallagher Wines Sauvignon Blanc 2022.
This super little “savvy” is brightly lit in the glass with a pale, golden straw colour. A swirl reveals tropically exotic aromas of guava, paw paw and lychee with a hint of freshly crushed green herbs. On the palate, it’s lively and fresh tasting with vibrant tropical fruit flavours, a lovely lick of acidity, leading to a super food-friendly finish.
We enjoyed our bottle, super-chilled with steamed prawn har gow dumplings with soy and sweet chilli sauce – a delectable combination. This would crack on with any grilled seafood straight from the BBQ plate, or even a fresh goat curd (or labneh!) cheese with a drizzle of honey. We bought our bottle from the local wine selection at Uncle Dan’s in town, but you can always drop into the cellar door down Dog Trap Road, or online for $30
