Why famed Macedon Ranges pinot producer Bindi will release two vintages in one

When disrupted flowering meant both the 2023 and 2024 harvests yielded significantly smaller crops than usual, Michael Dhillon of Bindi in the Macedon Ranges decided to release both vintages at the same time. 

“Both seasons cropped, on average, at one tonne per acre. We aim for two,” Michael says. “One half plus one half equals one whole.

“The ’23s also came up really well, beyond my expectations,” he adds. “When ’24 came around while the ’23s were still in barrel, and the volume was again so small, I thought, ‘there's no rush to push these out’.”

Michael Dhillon.

The release, in mid-June, will include the 2023 Bindi Block 5 Pinot Noir, 2023 Bindi Block 8 Pinot Noir, 2023 Darshan Pinot Noir, 2024 Bindi Block 5 Pinot Noir, 2024 Bindi Block 8 Pinot Noir, and 2024 Darshan Pinot Noir. 

While Michael says both are “very stylish vintages,” there’s “a lovely intensity and prettiness to the ’23s, whereas the ’24s are a bit more concentrated and a bit fuller.” 

There are also differences derived from site. Block 5 is the winery’s flagship, planted in 1992 solely to MV6. “Block 5 is an exceptional vineyard,” he says. “It faces the right way, has the right amount of quartz rock and volcanic soil intermixed, and it has this purity and fragrance and opulence and texture to it, which it seems to maintain quite effortlessly.”  

Both Darshan and Block 8 are high-density vineyards, planted in 2014 and 2016 respectively, to half MV6 and half “a myriad of other clones”.   

Bindi's Block 5 vineyard.

“Even though Block 8 shares the same soil profile and pretty much the same aspect as Block 5, it has its own personality – more root vegetable, more dark fruit and spice. 

“Darshan is completely different. It’s on a different side of the house and winery to those two other vineyards. It's got less quartz rock, less volcanic soil and there's more clay there. It has this ethereal, fragrant perfume and driving, silky tannin palate.” 

While collectors of Bindi’s premium Macedon pinot noir in particular will agree with Michael that the opportunity to compare and contrast site and season in this manner is a “fun exercise”... it's one he hopes not to have to repeat too often. 

See how Jane Faulkner scored the wines below.

Subscribe to the Halliday Wine Companion Podcast

Hear from some of Australia's top winemakers and industry professionals as they share their stories and insights on the Halliday Wine Companion Podcast. Listen here, or on your usual podcast platform, and remember to rate, share and subscribe so you never miss an episode.