"If you see the wines of this Yarra Valley producer, you should pounce. The quantities are small but the produce is excellent." Campbell Mattinson
Emilian’s winemaker Robin Querre emigrated to Australia from France in late 2015. He and his wife founded Emilian in 2016. They focused on vineyards with mature vines and interesting clones, making small batch, single vineyard and single parcel innovative wines in a style they wanted to drink. The 2022 Emilian L'assemblage Pinot Noir Syrah, made from a six-acre vineyard in Dixons Creek which was planted in the 1980s, is a blend of 50% Pinot Noir and 50% Syrah.
"A gorgeous crimson red. Another understated and engaging wine from Emilian. This one has aromas of boysenberries, spiced raspberries and violets, which lead onto the light- to medium-bodied, finely tuned and persistent palate. The tannins are silky and harmonious, and my feeling is that as good as this is to drink now, it will become even more complex over the next three to five years." Philip Rich
"Aromatic, fruit driven, medium bodied wine. Spicy notes, white pepper, raspberry and morello cherry including nutmeg and cinnamon. A vibrant, complex mouthfeel with generosity from the Syrah." Emilian
"For the 2024 Halliday Wine Companion, I tasted and reviewed just over 400 wines from 61 producers in the Yarra Valley. And while I like to think I’ve got a great handle on what’s happening in the Yarra, I’m still surprised by the number of newish brands that pop up on my radar each year. When you taste something good, it makes you sit up and take notice! Heading the list for 2024 producers, whose wines I was tasting for the first time and scored well, were the wines from Emilian and Terrason, both based in the Yarra and both with strong connections to France." Philip Rich
Expert reviews
"A blend of 50/50% pinot noir/syrah from a vineyard in Dixons Creek; 25% whole bunches for the pinot and 15% for the syrah. Matured in seasoned 300L French barrels. A gorgeous crimson red. Another understated and engaging wine from Emilian. This one has aromas of boysenberries, spiced raspberries and violets, which lead onto the light- to medium-bodied, finely tuned and persistent palate. The tannins are silky and harmonious, and my feeling is that as good as this is to drink now, it will become even more complex over the next three to five years. Drink by 2028." Philip Rich, Halliday Wine Companion - 96 points and Special Value Wine ★
Awards
Special Value Wine – Halliday Wine Companion ★
The winemaker
Emilian’s winemaker and co-founder Robin Querre was born into a winemaking family. The Querre family’s connection with wine dates back to 1897; Robin’s great grandfather Theophile Querre worked in the wine industry as a negociant prior to purchasing his first vineyard in Pomerol in early 20th century. Robin’s grandfather, Daniel Querre, was the owner/winemaker at Chateau Monbousquet in Saint Emilion. Daniel is also acknowledged for his role in re-instituting the Jurade of Saint Emilion in 1948, a tradition that continues to this day.
Although he was born in Rheinfelden, a village on the German/Swiss border, Robin grew up at Monbousquet, the family estate in the southwest of France. It was at Monbousquet that Robin learnt that wine represents family, community, sharing, and that it imparts a certain joie de vivre.
After commencing his studies in medicine at Bordeaux university, Robin soon felt drawn back to wine and commenced his studies in oenology in 1999. He studied under Yves Glory, Denis Dubourdieu, Aline Lonvaud, and worked vintages at Chateau Canon, at Moueix under Jean-Claude Berrouet (who was supervising great Chateaux such as Petrus in Pomerol) and Rudd Estate in Napa Valley.
Robin has a respectful, philosophical connection with wine. It should be connected to the place, people, expression of terroir, and most of all tell a story. He is passionate about wine and cementing the best Australian wine on the global map.
Robin migrated to Australia in late 2015, and currently lives in the Dandenong Ranges with his young family. His wife Prue Hawkey, an Australian with a background in visual arts and heritage, assists in the day to day running of the business.
Emilian commenced in early 2016, following Prue and Robin’s return from France. Initially, they started off making small batch, single vineyard or single parcel, innovative wines in a style that they wanted to drink at home – their palates had changed after so much time away from Australian soil. They made them to share with winemaking friends, their families, and to explain the notion of Australian terroir to friends back in France. Robin decided to focus on vineyards with good exposition and soil, that had mature vines and interesting clones.
The little test went well, so they decided to trial selling their wine to a select commercial market. The name Emilian was chosen to reference the Benedictine monk who took his hermitage in a cave in the centre of Saint-Emilion village in the 8th century.
About the winery
Frenchman Robin Querre is the 4th generation of a family involved in winemaking in Saint-Émilion and Pomerolsince since 1897. He began studying medicine at Bordeaux University but switched to oenology in 1999. He studied under some of the Bordeaux greats, such as Yves Glories, Denis Dubourdieu and Aline Lonvaud, and worked vintages at Château Canon and Moueix.
Robin migrated to Australia in 2015, settling in the Dandenong Ranges with his wife, Prue Hawkey, and young family. While working for Laffort Oenology, a French company that produces oenological products for winemakers, Robin has quietly been making small parcels of his own wines since 2016 under the Emilian label.
Querre sources fruit mainly from a six-acre vineyard in Dixons Creek which was planted in the 1980s with pinot noir, chardonnay, semillon and cabernet sauvignon. In addition, he sources nebbiolo from a vineyard in the Strathbogie Ranges to make his rosé.
"With five wines ranging from 92–96 points, including a standout single vineyard nebbiolo rosé and pinot shiraz blend named L'assemblage Rouge, it’s no surprise that Campbell Mattinson points out in this year’s Halliday Wine Companion, 'If you see the wines of this Yarra Valley producer, you should pounce.' Emilian has nailed the design of their labels – another sign that their attention to detail is spot on." Philip Rich
The text below is taken from an article by Mikayla van Loon in the Upper Yarra Star Mail
Emilian was nominated as one of the finalists in the 'Dark Horse Winery' category for the 2024 Halliday Wine Companion Awards.
Receiving the dark horse nomination, Emilian winemaker and co-founder Robin Querre (pictured above) said, it is not only a wonderful boost as a small batch winemaker but for the entire region.
Having grown up in the south western wine region of France in the historical village of Saint Emilion, Robin was influenced by his surroundings and family connection to story, wine and history.
Bringing his own family to Australia seven years ago, Robin was able to acquire a pre-loved vineyard to start producing his own wine and so Emilian was born.
"We try to connect where we are coming from and wine means a lot in our culture, it’s not just an alcoholic beverage, it follows all the seasons and it’s working with people to have a sense of place and community," he said.
Managing such a different climate where the grapes have incredible fruit expression but less structure and texture, Robin said oftentimes it can be an experiment.
"2020, it was very cold and a very long season so the vines were brighter but they had depth as well and a lot of fruit expressions. So every year we don’t know what we’re going to make. It’s just about allowing the purest expression." Hand picking each grape and being able to select every element in the early stages allows Robin to experiment with texture and depth depending on the season’s climate.
Any sort of recognition, Robin said, is of course nice, particularly because it gives him the certainty that people are enjoying the way he creates wine and provides confidence to the stakeholders who believe in his vision.
Wanting to one day be able to pass on the tradition of winemaking to his daughter, Robin said it’s more than just a product, it’s a legacy, a story and human connection, as well as a responsibility to the earth to leave it better than they found it.
