Crittenden Estate
25 Harrisons Rd, Dromana VIC 3936 · $$
The Peninsula's pioneering estate, four decades of Crittenden family winemaking, Pinot, Chardonnay, and the Spanish-Italian Los Hermanos range from a new lakeside wine centre.
The Peninsula's only amphora winery, terracotta-aged Sangiovese, Fiano, and Nebbiolo, and a cellar worth visiting on its own terms.
Known for Amphora Wine AgeingSangiovese and Fiano VarietiesWorking Cellar TourItalian-Varietal Focus
Photo · Peninsula Insider
Why we’d goWalking into a Peninsula cellar and finding it lined with terracotta amphora rather than French oak is the kind of small shock that reorients how you think about the region's possibilities.
Trofeo Estate is the Peninsula's one and only amphora winery. The team ages a meaningful portion of the estate's production in terracotta pots rather than oak barrels, and the resulting wines, Sangiovese, Fiano, Nebbiolo, have a textural depth and a savoury edge that nothing else in the region produces. The ancient method sits oddly against the Peninsula's cool-climate reputation and that is exactly why it works: the contrast is the conversation.
The barrel room itself is worth the visit. Stepping into a Peninsula cellar and finding it lined with huge clay amphora rather than the expected rows of French oak is the kind of small shock that reorients how you think about the region's possibilities. The tasting is generous and the team is happy to explain the winemaking in detail, the how and the why of terracotta versus oak.
Book the cellar tour. Taste the Sangiovese and the Fiano back-to-back. Bring home whichever one most surprises you.
Worth knowing
If you only do one thing
Book the cellar tour, stand in the amphora room for a moment before you taste anything, and then work through the Sangiovese and Fiano back-to-back to understand what the terracotta is doing.
Works well with
Crittenden Restaurant · Small Stone Pantry
Filed under Cellar DoorSlowAll YearCouplesSoloGroup
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25 Harrisons Rd, Dromana VIC 3936 · $$
The Peninsula's pioneering estate, four decades of Crittenden family winemaking, Pinot, Chardonnay, and the Spanish-Italian Los Hermanos range from a new lakeside wine centre.
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