Chatting with a Serbian friend, originally from Bosnia, we were discussing the different ways our cultures referred to grandparents. Grandpa/ma, nanna, pop, nan, nonna/nonno for Italians (she is married to a Calabrese), yia yia/papu and in Serbian, deda/deka. We had just taken delivery of four wines from Iggy, a Barossa based producer, originally from Slovenia. Their white, a Rousanne/Marsanne blend is called Deda, in honour of Igor’s grandfather, who he helped in the vineyards.
My friend told me that as a child, she could remember Slovenian’s coming to Bosnia for holidays and that although the language was different, there were many similarities and they could understand each other. This might have nothing to do with wine in a literal sense, but wine is just a drink without the people and their stories and the connections they make, everyday, all over the world. The day of our conversation on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, we ate roast suckling pig, cooked by our friend of Calabrese extraction and myself (a mongrel Aussie) with our Serbian and English wives and Australian children, served with a Barossa Valley wine called Deda, made by Slovenians.
For what it’s worth, the combination of pig and wine was perfect. We hardly ever drink White Rhone blends, finding them too big, oily and bitter. Blousy wines, lacking freshness, that tire the palate before the first glass is finished. Not so here. As a prelude to trying Iggy’s reds, this was rich and fragrant, poised, lanolin textured and flowing. Hay coloured, you could taste the sunshine and flowers and fruit. Unforced and elegant, a wine from a warm climate to be sure, a warm embrace with freshness and energy. I was hooked.
The wines of Iggy have absorbed the traditions of their region, for no other reason than the best reason; they make the best wines. Igor has made wine all over the world, and it’s because of these influences that he is able to craft such beautiful, authentic expressions rather than attempting emulation. We almost didn’t buy the Forreston Syrah as so many Adelaide Hills wines are trying to make a Crozes-Hermitage, rather than embracing the qualities of what they have. The winemaking for the Forreston is as simple as it gets, all reds in the range get similar treatment. Destemmed grapes see a short cold soak, followed by a long cool natural fermentation, then basket pressed, before maturation in seasoned oak, for up to 20 months. Bottled unfined and unfiltered, it’s that simple.
Artisan wine producers don’t get much better than Iggy. Authentic, unforced wines of place, a testament to the perfection of classical wine styes all over the world. With their alluring aromatics, purity, silky flow, rich fruit and interwoven tannins, they are sensual, evocative and, as we can attest, match very well with food. The people are joyous, the prices very reasonable, and the wines exquisite. Tiny quantities, as little as 800 bottles, 1400 at best.
Iggy Deda Rousanne/Marsanne 2022
Whole bunch pressed, matured in oak, around a fifth new and with full malolactic fermentation. The wine is rich and dark in colour, and for all its flavour; beautifully aromatic, fresh and textured. Very complex, with notes of crushed apple, honeycomb, jasmine, white peach, pear and roasted almond. Full bodied and round in shape. Lanolin texture, creamy, silky, pure. Notes of melon, yellow peach, white cherry, nectarine, Victoria plum and fennel. Utterly absorbing, a style of wine I rarely enjoy, yet one of our favourite whites of the year so far. Served with roast suckling pig, a perfect combination.
A great vintage in the Adelaide Hills. Extended skin contact and 2 years of maturation in seasoned French oak has enhanced the power and vibrancy of the vintage, weaving the long, long tannins with the pure, generous, ripe fruit. Tangy red fruits of sour cherry, plum and redcurrant mix with blueberry, blackberry, cola and baking spices. Such a fascinating and beautiful wine, a marriage of classicism with the exotic. Savoury and sweet spices, fennel, aniseed, raspberry, lavender, cigar box and subtle oak char. The tannins framing, from the front of the palate to the very end. Balanced, sensual and seductive, delicious now and with a very long life ahead.
There’s no mistaking where this comes from. Super vibrant aromatics of violets, cassis, kirsch, chocolate, blueberry, raspberry and charcoal. Rich and full bodied. Very powerful indeed, yet with precision and a sort of tactile grace. Some subtle sweet meat and game notes, which will no doubt come through more as the wine ages. Still, the fruit is vibrant and fresh, cooling with sage and mint. Balanced and seamless, in a sweet spot at the moment, all the elements combining perfectly. Silky flow, sensual, the glistening chocolate tannins wrapped in fruit. Absolutely gorgeous.
Classic Barossa, classic. Blackcurrant, mint, chocolate, glace cherries, ferrous, blackberry, maple and sweet raspberry. The oak is a little more evident here, and the fruit is fleshy and succulent. Pure and deep, compact and precise, and I wish I had decanted this before drinking. Very fine, with Nutella and savoury spice-laden tannins that tighten and grip towards the close. As so often at this stage of evolution, the Lyndoch is more backward and elemental than the Springton and still needs a few more years to come together. Beef on the bone cooked over coals.
