Konpira Maru Gravy is something different

This week I finally tried a wine I picked up a while ago that I’ve been meaning to crack open. We picked it up when we were on the Urban Wine Walk in Brisbane in May, but because of the cold weather I haven’t thought to open it, or anything that cold really, for a while. However this weekend it seemed like the perfect opportunity. So we sat down to a nice platter of cheese and poured ourselves a glass of the Konpira Maru Gravy Semi-Sweet Red 2018.

I know what you’re thinking. A wine called Gravy? What’s that all about? I have to say when we got to talking with the team at the Urban Wine Walk, I was intrigued by the name. I mean any wine with a name like Gravy has to have a good story behind it right? And it most certainly did. I always love trying new things, and so I was keen to give this wine a go and share it with you all. Not the wine, then I’d have none left for myself…the story of course!

Let me tell you the story of the Konpira Maru Gravy

Konpira Maru Wines focus on minimal intervention wines. I have to say I haven’t gotten on the natural wine bandwagon yet, but I did enjoy their wines when we tried a couple a lot more than some of the other natural wines I’ve had so far. The team of two winemakers focus on making interesting wines with a focus on affordability and drinkability. Sound like something you’d be interested in? Me too! Their wines are also all about putting the fun back in wine, which is right up my alley!

They make most of their wines from the South Burnett and the Granite Belt Regions in Queensland as well as Kilmore in Victoria. They also now have their own winery above the King Valley, however, focus on getting the right fruit for their wines without worrying about the location.

What do you do when you have overripe grapes?

So where did the Konpira Maru Gravy come from? Well, in 2018, Queensland had a brutal summer after a heavy storm season, resulting in low production in the region. The team at Konpira Maru got their Cabernet Grapes and they were so ripe that they were more like sultanas. Rather than throw these grapes out, they thought about how they could utilise them to avoid waste. So they put their heads together and created they called the gravy as it brought together a bit of everything.

The wine ended up being a port-style made naturally with no fortification.  They put the Cabernet together with some Nebbiolo skins to ferment and added a splash of Semillon for freshness. This wine has no additions, is unfiltered and unfined. Although it may not be the gravy you’d put on your roast beef, it is a gravy of delicious wine, and I’m all about that.

What could have been a disaster ending in wasted fruit resulted in an opportunity taken to create this really unusual wine. And $5 of each bottle sold is donated to charity!

Why I loved it

The Konpira Maru Gravy was the most unique wine I’ve had in a long time. When I tried it again for some reason my brain thought it was going to be sparkling because of the bottle. But this wine is more of a port-style, so think rich, sweeter flavours. It is more of a dessert wine in taste, but less sweet.

Make sure you give this wine a good swirl before you smell it as it is so unrefined and unfiltered. You’ll be rewarded with aromas of spice, dried herbs and savoury notes on top of sweet berries. The wine itself is quite sweet, but because of the addition of the Semillon, it has a nice freshness to it that leaves you wanting another sip. I sometimes find dessert wines to be a bit too syrupy for me, but the Konpira Maru Gravy I found quite well-balanced and much easier to drink.

What to enjoy it with

We had the Konpira Maru Gravy before dinner, but I would recommend enjoying this one afterwards instead. It is definitely more of a dessert wine style and so would be enjoyed most after a meal. What I did think it went really well with was our cheese platter, so if you pair it with anything, this would be my recommendation. The saltiness of the cheese really complimented the sweetness in the wine.

This wine is also perfect for summer drinking, so make sure you serve it chilled. They also suggest serving it over ice with some orange peel, which I personally think would be really refreshing!

The final word on the Konpira Maru Gravy

The Konpira Maru Gravy is a great story of waste not, want not. I think this is so important in the current climate as we need to learn how to work with changing conditions and turn issues into opportunities. What could have been a disaster, in this case, became a really interesting and unique wine, one that made me remember Konpira Maru as a standout from the Urban Wine Walk.

If you aren’t into dessert wines at all, this might not be your bag. But if you are like me and don’t like them too sweet, I’d recommend trying out this wine. It offers a really balanced flavour that is unusual and something I’ve never tried before. It will be perfect as we come into the warmer months to cool down after a hot day.