Ochota Barrels A Forest Pinot Noir 2021

The story of Ochota Barrels began during a surf expedition along the Mexican west coast in 2000. Taras and Amber Ochota, inspired by their global travels through esteemed wine and surf regions, envisioned crafting super premium wines in South Australia. Focusing on McLaren Vale's Grenache and Barossa Valley's Shiraz, they sought out exceptional old vineyard sites to produce plush, small batch, single vineyard wines, maintaining a consistent dedication to precision and compression in their winemaking. Taras, an Adelaide University Oenology graduate, honed his skills at renowned wineries like Two Hands and MSV in the Barossa Valley, alongside collaborative ventures in Sweden and California with esteemed producers such as Kunin, Bonnacorsi, and the iconic Hitching Post's label, Hartley-Ostini, from the movie 'Sideways.'

Their winemaking philosophy embraces a "less is more" approach, intertwining their passion for music into both the literal and symbolic fabric of their wines. Reflecting this ethos, many of their wines are named after meaningful bands or songs, such as Fugazi, Slint, and I am the Owl. Taras aptly captures the connection between music and wine, noting that "music and wine are so connected in so many ways, I reckon you can often see the styles of music people like in the wines they make. I like edgy music, rawer, sharper, and my wines tend to be all elbows and knees sticking out."

Sadly, in October of 2020, Taras left us following a lengthy battle with an auto-immune disease. The news was devastating, and the wine world lost one of its true originals and visionaries. More importantly, a wife lost her husband, two children lost their father, and Vine Street lost a very special friend. It was also a low point for anyone who had met Taras; he will always be remembered for his innate quality of making you feel like the only person in the room. Despite the tragedy and the heartache that doesn't get any easier with time, Amber is continuing the family vision with the 'recipes' that Taras wrote for her just hours before his death. She makes wines out of the family cellar in the Basket Range with the help of Taras' father, Yari, and Taras' protégé, Louis Schofield, who makes his own wines under his Worlds Apart label. 

Ochota Barrels forever changed the face of Australian wine, and today, Taras' legacy lives on through the dedication and altruism of Amber. There has never been a truer labor of love...