This is the first release of this wine, made from 70% Pinot Gris and 30% Riesling from the western slopes of Leanganook on Mount Alexander. Pat's Dash Farm vineyard sits at 475 metres on quartz and feldspar sand, with vines planted in the late 1990s. At nearly 30 years old, they pack some punch.

The grapes were left to ripen a little longer on the vine to develop phenolic ripeness and fruit generosity, then destemmed and co-fermented in a 3700 litre cement vessel on skins. Co-fermenting, as Pat explains, gives complex perfumes, acids and phenolics. After four weeks the wine was drained, not pressed, off the skins and moved to oak puncheons for a short elevage before finishing in stainless steel.

The result, in Pat's words, is a wine with layered perfume, complex fruit and very fine tannin. It is a compelling debut: the Pinot Gris brings texture and aromatic generosity, the Riesling keeps it taut and precise, and the skin contact ties it all together with a fine, dry grip. Bendigo at its most interesting.