Tasting Note This is the second season for the refurbished Grange of Prince Edward under winemaker Jonas Newman. This wine pours with more colour extraction than expected — fairly deep lemon-gold. The nose is nicely lifted and very complex with ripe yellow apple, honeysuckle, hazelnut/cashew, vague butter, nutmeg and toastiness. Lots going and the flavours drive right through the rich but not heavy texture. Very good County acidity and minerality, ending with a slightly tart finish. Excellent length. This is approachable now and should age well for the next three to five years. Tasted November 2025.
Backgrounder Housed in a classic Victorian barn on Closson Road and surrounded by 100-plus bucolic acres of vineyard and forest, this is the poster property of PEC. Planted in 2001 and opened in 2003 by the Granger family, it became a centre of County hospitality, and the wines improved as the vineyards aged. By the mid 2010s the style tilted into more natural winemaking, and quality and commerciality began to suffer. In the early 2020s it was taken over by an investor group, which refurbished the vineyards and classic stone cellar in the barn basement. Mike Peddlesden, the original viticulturalist, was hired back to restore the vineyards and winemaker Jonas Newman from neighbouring Hinterland was installed as the head winemaker. Labels were re-designed and the wine program was edited into four price tiers, of which this is the second-tier Estate Series. Newman recounts that the 2024 vintage produced smaller berries that ripened quickly. As a result of the lower crop there was no first-tier Aurelia made in 2024 (which has bumped the quality of this bottling). This wine was aged in French and Austrian oak that Newman says “is very respectful” of the fruit.
