Birdie range a labour of love

Thousands of wines have crossed my tasting bench over the years, the majority from established producers both big and small.

Just occasionally, however, something quite new arrives. And not just new, but interesting and exciting.

Such was the case the other day when I received a collection of new releases from Dream Bird, a label started by experienced Margaret River-based winemaker Kym Carr in 2015.

Dream Bird Wines is a label born of tragedy, yet with an uplifting and wonderfully emotional story that captures much about family, the human spirit and enduring love.

Dream Bird’s Birdie range is a beautiful tribute to Ms Carr’s much-loved younger sister, Pip, who died of breast cancer some years ago.

Pip was known affectionately as Birdie, and Ms Carr had promised her younger sister she would live life to the fullest, remember her sibling with joy, and embrace fun.

The Birdie range captures much of this positive ethos through the names, styles and winemaking approach, which have combined to create a distinctive and individual range of wines.

The wines are serious stuff, but their names are fun, capturing much of what I suspect is the spirit of Ms Carr’s younger sister.

The fruit is sourced from specific well-chosen vineyards in Margaret River and Geographe, which ensures a diversity of variety and style.

I found the styles most captivating, because even with generally fruity and somewhat racy varieties such as vermentino, riesling and chenin blanc, Ms Carr has built in a textural component that adds another level of interest and appeal with depth and complexity. 

This is achieved by using pressings, solids and lees contact and generally older oak puncheon fermentation.

Many of the wines being made today by the bigger companies can be predictable at best and boring at worst, but these largely small-batch wines are a refreshing and engaging point of difference.

The range rates highly in current drinking, but the thoughtful and clever winemaking merits these wines being taken seriously.

In the whites I was particularly fond of the riesling, vermentino and chenin blanc, which show an interpretation different from most contemporary examples.

In the reds, excellent grenache, shiraz viognier and malbec are beautifully crafted and thoroughly delicious current drinking.

A quality chardonnay and delightfully fragrant tempranillo-based rosé complete the range.

In the Dream Bird Birdie range, Ms Carr has created a beautiful homage to her sister.

These wines are just starting to get into retail. Check out Freo Doctor and Old Bridge Cellars.

Dream Bird Wines Birdie Goodie Goodie vermentino 2023 ($28)

Okay, so you have your usual vermentino, which is crisp, fine, and racy with a faint textural feel. Then you get this, which is distinctly more textural. Some time on skins initially and then natural yeasts leading to time on lees to infuse more texture. Has an appealing spicy floral and lemon zest character on the nose. The palate is textured but with a fine tense acidity adding to its linear feel. Loads of stone fruit adds to the appeal. A nice wine.

Score 92/100

Cellar: Three years

Dream Bird Birdie Gertie riesling 2023 ($28)

This comes from an outstanding Ferguson Valley vineyard that makes some of the finest rieslings in the state. Interesting use of pressings and solids has built in a textural mouthfeel without compromising the essential linear palate feel. There’s citrus but then there is that appley character that seems part of the vineyard. Lovely talc-like acid and a trace of minerally tension adds to the picture. Super little wine.

Score 93/100

Cellar: Seven years

Dream Bird Birdie Spin the Bottle shiraz viognier 2022 ($28)

It only has 2 per cent viognier, but you know this vinous perfume concentrate is there playing a perfect supporting role. The shiraz is from Donnybrook and the viognier from Margaret River. About 25 per cent was new oak and the remainder seasoned puncheons. It’s lively with a bright appeal. Plummy dark chocolate with a spicy ginger floral lift. Has a wonderfully poised mouth feel. Like this one.

Score 95/100

Cellar: Nine years

• Ray Jordan is one of Australia’s most experienced and respected wine journalists, contributing to newspapers and magazines over more than 40 years. In 2017 he co-authored The Way it Was: The History of the early years of the Margaret River Wine Region