Wine

Newcastle Herald

Saturday March 31, 2007

With John Lewis

Millamolong

2006 Orange Riesling

For good reason, the labels on the Millamolong 2005 Orange Chardonnay and 2006 Orange Riesling carry images of a polo player on a cantering pony.

That's because the 4050-hectare Millamolong property, near Blayney, is owned by James William Ashton, a member of a family famous in international polo.

Millamolong, which was first settled in 1836 and has been owned by Ashtons since 1930, breeds champion polo ponies, operates as a farming and grazing property and offers country-stay accommodation. James Ashton and members of his family orthopaedic surgeon son Andrew and his wife Melanie and daughter Sally and her urologist husband David Jefferson run the 28-hectare Millamolong vineyard business.

The cool-climate vineyard is 600 metres above sea level and is within the Orange region. It has plantings of shiraz, chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon, merlot and riesling and produced its first wines in 2003.

The reds are made by Jane Wilson and David Lowe at Mudgee and the whites are made by Orange-based, French-born contract winemaker Chris Derrez.

The two current-release Derrez-crafted whites are pretty smart. I particularly like the 2006 riesling. It has honeysuckle aromas and shows crisp, ruby grapefruit flavour on the front of the palate. The middle palate has lemon curd and spice characters with candied honey underlays and the finish features fresh river stones acid.

It would be nice with saute{aac}ed garlic mushrooms, tuna rice salad or Thai seafood kebabs.

The Ashton saga dates back to James William Ashton's grandfather, James Ashton Snr, who bought the Markdale sheep and cattle station at Goulburn for his sons (James Hay, Bob, Geoff and Phillip).

When a retired British army officer introduced polo to Goulburn, the Ashton boys took to the sport with passion. The four became the top polo team in Australia and developed a lucrative sideline to woolgrowing at Markdale by breeding cavalry horses and polo ponies for India.

In 1930 they took a huge gamble by sailing off with their team of ponies to compete in Britain and the US.

They triumphed against the world's best polo teams and sold their ponies in the US, with each brother buying his own property in Australia.

James Hay acquired Millamolong and it later passed to his eldest son, James William, who has played polo around the world.

Available: on the website

www.millamolong.com or

on (02) 6367 5241

Price: $20

Rating: ****

© 2007 Newcastle Herald

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