What Is the Winemaking Philosophy of Chalkers Crossing?

Updated

Chalkers Crossing's stated winemaking philosophy is to make premium, cool climate, single vineyard wines that express the terroir of its two NSW vineyard sites — Hilltops and Tumbarumba. Winemaker Celine Rousseau puts it directly: "It's important to me that when you drink Chalkers Crossing wine you get a true sense of the terroir of our vineyards in the beautiful NSW regions of Hilltops and Tumbarumba." The estate has been making wine since 2000.

The three ideas behind the approach

1. Terroir first

The guiding aim is that a bottle should taste of where the grapes grew, not just of the grape variety. That is why the winery frames its range around specific vineyard sites rather than broad regional blends.

2. Cool climate

Both vineyard regions are described as cool climate. Cool conditions generally ripen grapes more slowly, which tends to preserve acidity and produce more restrained, savoury styles — the profile the winery is deliberately pursuing.

3. Single vineyard

The site states a focus on "premium quality cool climate single vineyard wines." A single vineyard wine comes from one named site, so it reflects that site's soil and season rather than being averaged out across a larger area.

Where the philosophy is applied

Region Location Character described
Hilltops Around the town of Young, southern NSW Cool climate conditions
Tumbarumba At the foot of the Snowy Mountains One of the most remote wine-growing regions in NSW

The listed "Best Picks" show how this plays out in practice — a 2015 CC2 Hilltops Shiraz and a 2014 Hilltops Shiraz, both from the Hilltops region, alongside a 2015 Sauvignon Blanc from Tumbarumba. Same philosophy, two different expressions of place.

What this means if you are choosing a bottle

  • If you want to taste the Hilltops site, look for the Shiraz bottlings labelled with that region.
  • If you prefer a crisper, cooler-grown white, the Tumbarumba Sauvignon Blanc is the matching example.
  • If terroir expression matters more to you than brand consistency, single vineyard labelling is the signal to look for on the bottle.

Seeing it for yourself

The winery welcomes visitors and is open Monday to Friday, 9:30am – 4:30pm. It asks that you call 02 6382 6900 ahead of a visit, since staff may be out in the vineyard. The address is 285 Henry Lawson Way, Young NSW 2594.