Ten Minutes By Tractor grow Pinot Noir and Chardonnay on all three of their home vineyards, each of which are ten minutes by tractor apart. The McCutcheon, Wallis and Judd vineyards are all within the Main Ridge subregion, one of the coolest and highest parts of the Mornington Peninsula. In addition to Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Tempranillo are also grown on the Wallis Vineyard and Sauvignon Blanc on the Judd Vineyard. The team meticulously manage their three vineyards to vertical shoot positioning, leaf plucking, hedging, bunch thinning and harvesting, all of which are done by hand.
Each block on each vineyard is picked and vinified separately, allowing us maximum flexibility just before bottling to identify the best performing blocks and vineyards to be able to release single vineyard wines or to select the best blends. Ten Minutes By Tractor have a non-interventionist approach to winemaking, adopting traditional winemaking techniques that help to enhance the wonderful flavours, complexity, elegance and length of palate for which their wines have become renowned.
All wines (except for the tank fermented Sauvignon Blanc) are fermented by using the indigenous or wild yeasts that reside in the vineyard, on the skins of grapes and the winery. Pinot Noir is aged for 12 to 18 months in French oak barriques and lightly fined. Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and barrel fermented Sauvignon Blanc are also fermented in French oak barrels. All wines are bottled under screwcap to prevent cork taint, random oxidation and to preserve the pristine characters of the wines.
Blending decisions are made just prior to bottling, at which time the blends and single vineyard releases are chosen. The craft of winemaking is a process of continual learning and discovery. Ten Minutes By Tractor strive for continual improvement on all that they do. The team are passionate about the challenge of understanding everything that contributes to the quality of wines.
