Peter Logan of Logan Wines has been making wine for nearly a quarter of century. The key has always been experimentation as evidenced by his Clementine wine but few may know of his bacon beginnings.
Orange beginnings
Before we knew WTH millennials were, Peter Logan was making wine. He started 24 years ago in the Orange wine region of Australia, but he couldn’t afford to build his own winery back then.
Wine maker Peter Logan has been making experimental wines for almost a quarter of a century. Here at his vineyards in Mudgee, Australia.
He ended up getting a job at a winery in the Mudgee wine region of Australia and fell in love with the area.
He now sources his grapes from both Orange and Mudgee, both considered cool climate regions in Australia.
Mudgee is characterized by gravely and quartz laced red loam soil, while Orange has the distinction of being the highest altitude wine region in the Australia and volcanic soil that lends to more floral notes in the wine.
The Bacon sandwich that changed it all
One night, Peter's dad bought him a bacon and egg roll sandwich. They sat down to eat, and his dad pointed to a plot of land in the distance and asked him if he thought they could grow grapes there.
Peter replied yes, and his dad mentioned that he just happened to buy it in the pub the night before.
The result was not only one of the most stunning tasting rooms in Australia but also a place to call home.
Who knew that bacon could be so life changing?
According to Peter Logan, their modern tasting room "looks out to the world, not inward," that mindset has "has allowed this small independent winemaker to still be excited to do the same old thing for 24 years.,"
The Demise of Merlot
While they used to sell heaps of merlot, but he can’t move it now due to dwindling demand, and he finds the younger crowd to be more experimental in their winemaking choices.
The front row of his vineyard used to be merlot, but he has since chopped off their tops and will graft on temperanillo.
Clementine Wine
Peter has named his orange wine Clementine, which is not only a tangerine varietal, but also the name of his sweet daughter.
In his words, these are the exact same grapes as white wine but fermented in a different way that is more complex with aroma with a smoother palate than white wine.
Interestingly enough, he is seeing more interest in orange wine, particularly from Japan.
Food Pairing
Logan pairs his clementine wine with charcuterie and mentioned that they pair well with anything that has lemon.
These wines spent 2 weeks fermenting with the skins. He sells an orange hued version that is filtered and an unfiltered version that is tinged yellow.
Orange wine can pair properly with the varying flavors found on a charcuterie board including some dukkah spices and fresh country bread baked from the neighbor at the Logan Wines tasting room.
Logan also recommends pairing with fried white bait but mentioned that his distributors in Japan will pair with sushi.
I actually do think skin contact wines are best paired with sushi, since they have acidity like a white that isn’t overshadowed with a strong soy sauce for dipping.
That beautiful, strawberry blonde lusciousness named Clementine from Logan wines is paired here sashimi favorites.
Whether you call them orange, amber, or skin contact wines, do know that the only orange wine that is actually from the Orange wine region may be from Logan Wines.
Questions for Discussion
If you have an answer to one of these questions, please share your knowledge and comment below!
- Do you know why someone would graft temperanillo onto merlot vines? Please explain. (I don't quite understand.)
- Do you think orange wine will become as popular as rosé or is it too difficult to make?
- Are millennials ruining the wine landscape, or should we just be happy that they are drinking it at all?
Learn more about Orange Wines
To learn more about skin contact wines and foods to pair with them, check out these posts from the #winepw writers:
- Camilla of Culinary Adventures With Camilla will be Diving into the Skin Fermented Wine Pool of Two Shepherds Winery.
- Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm presents Donkey and Goat Skin Fermented Roussanne: A Baaaaad Ass Wine.
- Andrea of The Quirky Cork takes up Turkish Amber Wines and Fast Food.
- Olivier of In Taste Buds We Trust is Trying Orange and Non-Orange Wine with Jamie’s Kinda Niçoise Salad.
- Lori of Exploring The Wine Glass asks Orange You Glad I Have Wine?
- Jeff of Food Wine Click! offers Wine 201: Orange Wine Primer.
- Jill of L’Occasion has us Thinking Wine: The Engaging World of Orange Wine.
- Linda of My Full Wine Glass is Revisiting NY Finger Lakes Skin-Contact White Wines.
- David of Cooking Chat proffers Cauliflower Bacon Spread with Amber Wine from Georgia.
- Gwendolyn at Wine Predator will be featuring Orange Wines from California and Italy by Accident and On Purpose Paired with Shrimp Curry.
- Lauren at The Swirling Dervish posts He Said, She Said: Ryme Cellars and the Tale of Two Vermentinos.
- Susannah of Avvinare serves up Orange Wine From Slovenia’s Movia Paired with Homemade Sushi.
- Katrina of The Corkscrew Concierge wonders Is Orange (Wine) the New Everything Wine?
- Nicole at Somm’s Table is Cooking to the Wine: Kabaj Rebula and Chicken with Mushroom Escabeche and Lentils.
- Rupal, the Syrah Queen advises us that Radikon Orange Wine – Not Just For Hipsters.
- Terri of Our Good Life declares Orange Wine is a Thing.
- Host Martin at ENOFYLZ Wine Blog serves up A Cadre Of California Skin-Contact Wines Paired With Ethnic Fare.
Nicole Ruiz Hudson says
This post is a lot of fun, but I've got so many questions! Starting with how did he just happen to buy land at the pub?????
Jeff Burrows says
I haven't tried orange wines with sushi, it seems I may the only one who missed that boat!
As for your questions:
It's standard to graft one variety over onto another base or rootstock. The resulting wine is true to the vine material they graft on, and the vine is in production sooner than planting a new vine. He must believe he can sell more Tempranillo than Merlot.
My opinion: orange wine will never be as popular as rose. Not because it's more difficult but because the flavors are unfamiliar.
Lastly, I hate putting people into age boxes. Younger consumers, whatever we call them, will tell winegrowers what they want to drink by voting with their dollars. It's up to us to help that process. Not their fault!
Lori says
sushi and orange food... seems there is a trend going here!
Beautiful tasting room.
Kat says
I would have never thought to pair sushi but definitely want to try this pairing. And did not realize the Australian history with these wines.
Wendy Klik says
I love that he named his "orange" wine clementine along with his daughter....Oh my darling!!
Lauren says
There's just so much to love about this post: they bought the vineyard land in a pub; the orange wine is named after his daughter; and bacon! Your photos make me feel as though I've been there in person. Thanks Deana for sharing your trip!
Andrea says
Wow what a color on that wine!
Martin Redmond says
He Deanna! I've not considered a skin contact wine with sushi. The combination of wasabi and soy can be tough on a wine (My favorite pairing with sushi is probably Sherry). I'll have to try it with sushi! Thanks for joining!