Why Fiano?

How well do you know Fiano? I think that to be fair, I don’t know it all that well. In fact, I’ve only made Fiano 7 times! But such is the nature of winemaking. You could be an OG and still have only made wine 20 times (or vintages). So, while 7 isn’t a really big number, it does offer a significant amount of experience, relatively speaking. Over that time I’ve had a few hits, but some misses too. All of these get filed away in my brain and stored for the next time I make it, to incorporate my knowledge and experience into my next kick at the Fiano can. 

So what have I learned? Well, the first thing I’ve learned is that if you just let Fiano be and make it just like many other Australian whites are made, then you can expect a wine with little aromatic character, and not much interest on the palate either. That might sound like a wine you wouldn’t want to make, however you have to start somewhere. I look back to the first Fiano I made in 2017, and that was pretty ‘by the numbers’. The thing is though – you need to have a starting point. If you, or any of the people in your winemaking circle have no experience with the grape, how do you manage your winemaking? The answer is: cautiously. Once you have a starting point, then you can re-evaluate and then go in a certain direction. For me, in year one (2017) I was very conservative with my winemaking. That meant clarifying the juice, using cultured yeast, all tank fermentation, etc. The resultant wine was a little bit boring, but it gave some hints to the potential of the variety. In the years since then, I’ve tried using different yeasts, using barrel ferments and lees contact, among other things. Some of these have been wins and are now incorporated into the way I make the wine. Others have been kicked to the curb. I feel like I’m pretty comfortable with what I want the wine to look like now, and what I need to do to the wine to get the results I’m looking for. 

Now, on the surface, this sounds like this is all about the decisions of the winemaker, and that I can completely control how this wine is going to look, smell and taste. One needs to remember though – the reason I use Fiano is that it’s a grape that grows so well in the McLaren Vale climate, when the grapes arrive at the winery they are in such perfect condition that they need zero maintenance or manipulation and go straight into the press with no adds. The only thing I ever add to the Fiano is yeast, and that has more to do with my own idiosyncrasies than anything else. Fiano is perfectly suited to grow in McLaren Vale, and that’s why I choose to work with it. It is the perfect white grape to showcase the region of McLaren Vale. 

For me, the most important thing when making Fiano is to try to build texture on the palate. Like many Italian white varieties, the aromatic profile of the variety is a secondary concern, and the texture of the wine is the primary concern. I try to build the texture I’m looking for while still maintaining the freshness and vibrancy of the wine, which is also very important. My intention is not to just copy the Campanians (Campania in Italy is the home of Fiano – close to Mount Vesuvius for reference), but to find some middle ground between their winemaking style, and ours. Our wines should be a nod to the variety and where it came from, but it also should speak of McLaren Vale and have our region’s DNA in it. I think we’re getting there, and the Fianos being produced in the Vale and around the country are getting better and better and more interesting every year. 

I hope you enjoy our 2023 example of the variety, and thanks for reading.