DORMILONA
-
Josephine Perry, winemaker and proprietor of Dormilona, has worked more vintages than most people twice her age. Many North Americans don’t realize that the seasons are flipped in the Southern Hemisphere. By hopping back and forth between her home in Margaret River, Western Australia, and the Northern Hemisphere, she doubles the amount of wine she can make in a year. Add to this the disparity between harvest times in Australia (January-February) and New Zealand (March-April), and she sometimes even adds a third harvest. This insane work ethic has allowed her to acquire a surreal amount of knowledge and experience.
On her travels, she spent six years working in Spain. Waking up late, taking an afternoon nap, and staying up until the early hours wasn’t exactly her style. She preferred getting up before dawn, fitting in a swim, running, or surfing before the workday began. This usually meant she’d fall asleep at the dinner table, a habit that got her the nickname Dormilona: Lazy Bones. She decided this moniker fit her winemaking preferences perfectly - the less she has to do (i.e. fewer manipulations), the better.
-
Her label artist, Sean Edward Whelan, has created an adorable sleepy skeleton to represent this philosophy. After years of work, there’s whole mythology depicted on Josephine’s top bottles, mostly showing places on Dormilandia (an imaginary island) the skeleton likes to sleep. Her sense of adventure and joy is captured in her exuberant wines.
MORE WOMAN-LED WINERIES: CLAIRE NAUDIN | CANTINA MARILINA | ECHO BAY
GROWN AND MADE ON THE TRADITIONAL LANDS OF THE: WARDANDI | WHADJUK
2022/2023 TINTO
This Shiraz was inspired by the ‘Nouveau’ wines of France. Organic grapes from Osmington were harvested early in the morning. The wine is fermented whole-cluster in open-top tank, then basket-pressed before full dryness. After malolactic conversion in tank, and a quick settling period, the wine is bottled, unfined, unfiltered, and with minimal SO2.
2022/2023 BLANCO
This wine is made from Semillon grown in Yungarra vineyard in Yallingup. Located at the northern edge of Margaret River, this site benefits from its proximity to the water (nearly surrounded on two sides) and its position on the hillside. The grapes are whole cluster pressed early in the morning when everything is still cool. The juice ferments on full lees in tank. After a quick four-month élevage, the wine is racked and bottled with minimal SO2.
2022/2023 ORENJI
This wine is made from a blend of organic Semillon and Sauvignon Blanc. Some of the grapes are fermented on skins in open-top tank for two weeks while a second component ferments on skins in concrete egg for eight weeks. The wine undergoes élevage in a combination of concrete and neutral barrel before bottling with minimal SO2.
2022/2023 PINKU
This rosé is made from Shiraz from Yungarra Vineyard. The grapes are crushed and macerate for a short time before being pressed into tank for fermentation. Jo performs occasional bâtonnage to add even more texture. The wine is eventually racked and bottled with minimal SO2.
2022 TEACHERS PET
This wine was made from Tempranillo that is direct pressed into neutral barrel. When the wine is nearly done fermentation, it is racked and bottled without sulphur. Fermentation continues in bottle resulting in a modestly sparkling rosé.
2022 CRUM PET
This cuvée is made from Semillon. The grapes are whole cluster pressed into stainless steel for fermentation. The wine is bottled while still fermenting resulting in a naturally sparkling wine.
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $59.00 (AB)
CSPC: 895015 (AB)
2022 CABERNET SAUVIGNON
This wine is made from Cabernet Sauvignon grown in Yallingup. They foot stomp the grapes before fermentation in open-top tank. The wine undergoes an anaerobic three-month post fermentation maceration before being basket pressed into old oak. It sees one single racking before bottling, and only a minute addition of Sulphur.
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $59.00 (AB)
CSPC: 895016 (AB)
2022 CHARDONNAY
This Chardonnay comes from Burnside Farm, an impeccable biodynamic farm. They have a small avocado orchard and raise animals making this a true permaculture. Dry farming results in highly concentrated grapes. Whole clusters were pressed directly into a combination of large format neutral barrel and amphora for both fermentation and élevage on full lees. After a slightly longer élevage the wine is racked and bottled on a fruit day.
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $39.00 (AB), $51.00 (BC)
CSPC: 836618 (AB), 455285 (BC)
2022/2023 YOKEL GRENACHE
These bush vines were planted in the 1950’s in the middle Swan River Valley and are dry farmed. The grapes are destemmed into open top tank for fermentation with minimal cap manipulation for up to seven days. It is then pressed off into tank for élevage on lees before racking and bottling with minimal SO2.
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $39.00 (AB), $51.00 (BC)
CSPC: 836616 (AB), 455282 (BC)
2022/2023 YOKEL ROSÉ
This wine is made from Grenache grown in Vino Italia Vineyard in the Swan River Valley. The grapes were crushed and macerated on skins for one day before being pressed off into amphora and neutral barrel for fermentation. The wine is then racked into concrete for élevage. It was bottled with judicious SO2.
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $39.00 (AB), $51.00 (BC)
CSPC: 874418 (AB), 449499 (BC)
2022 YOKEL CHENIN BLANC
This wine comes from Pinelli Vineyard in the Swan Valley, east of Margaret River. The grapes were whole-cluster pressed into a variety of vessels including tank, large barrel, and amphora. Josephine performs bâtonnage during the first month of élevage to help achieve malolactic conversion before racking and bottling the wine.
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $77.00 (AB)
CSPC: 836619
2022 CLAYFACE CABERNET SAUVIGNON
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $77.00 (AB), $84.00 (BC)
CSPC: 874419 (AB), 874419 (BC)
2022 CLAYFACE CHENIN BLANC
This is our first ever allocation of Josephine’s top Chenin Blanc. The grapes are hand harvested in her precious Yungarra Vineyard before being destemmed into Italian amphora. The grapes ferment on skins for a full month before being pressed back into amphora to settle before bottling. Only 25 cases were produced; each bottle is hand numbered.
ESTIMATED RETAIL PRICE: $77.00 (AB), $84.00 (BC)
CSPC: 836620 (AB), 455293 (BC)
2021/2022 CLAYFACE CHARDONNAY
This is Josephine’s top Chardonnay Cuvée. The grapes were basket pressed into a small Italian amphora for fermentation and malolactic conversion. After resting on full lees, the wine is racked and bottled directly from clay. Only 45 cases were produced; each bottle is hand numbered.