Foreign Friends Savagnin 2024

LEILA & CRYSTAL DAVIS and  JULIETTE MENNETEAU

A relatively new but very exciting project that finds sisters Leila and Crystal, and good pal Juliette, combining forces on winemaking and grape sourcing. Wish I could find or knew their last names, but I guess asking that question was beyond me at time of review on a Sunday. I like their wines very much. High drinkability. Lots of charm. I might be a total drongo but feels impossible to see where the alcohol level is on the label.

This has the succulence, richness and depth of the variety with a cool, fresh finish and a general sense of slipperiness and ripeness. Tonic water, green pear, apple, ginger, cumin, some ginger beer and cider. Some pleasing, very varietal saltiness in the mix. An elegant, medium to fuller weight wine of immense character and charisma. (93) MIKE BENNIE, The Wine Front

The signature grape of the Jura finds a new home in the King Valley and does a mighty-fine job of it, too. It's fully concentrated in flavour and impressive in personality with some budding complexity building in its youth. Preserved lemon, grapefruit pith, peach, apple and gentle jasmine florals. But it's the spice that catches your attention, together with the overall warmth and generosity of the wine. (93) JENI PORT, Halliday Wine Companion

Foreign Friends is a boutique wine project founded by sisters Leila and Crystal with French friend Juliette, based in Beechworth, Victoria, and launched in 2023. They source high-altitude, granite-soiled blocks around the region including from further afield in the Yarra and King Valley. They craft expressive small-batch wines with a strong sense of place and minimal intervention that are pure, expressive and have a real understanding of what they are making and how to achive those ends. Their inaugural releases have already drawn attention for their texture, natural energy and purity. We were certainly impressed and the wines showcase a maturity and finesse beyond the project’s relatively young age.