De Bortoli can proudly claim to have written the book on Australian dessert style Semillon. Each year, the award winning team singles out the most appropriate parcels of Semillon, where the best conditions exist to let grapes hang on the vine until they have been affected sufficiently by Botrytis cinerea. The desired levels of noble rot are achieved through a painstaking course of hand pickings over a period of several weeks, performed ceremoniously each vintage around the shortened daytimes of a winter solstice.

It has taken decades to establish and cultivate Australia's finest Botrytis affected vineyards, De Bortoli are now custodians of one of the world's great endowments ‌in dessert wine viticulture. Grapes are harvested through a schedule of individual pickings, determined by the progress of berries as they become affected by Noble Rot. Fruit is brought to the Bilbul wineworks in timely fashion, crushed and fermented at temperatures between 13C and 15C over a period of four to eight weeks. Batches from each vineyard are separately handled, some components are treated to oak vinification or maturation, a sizeable portion remains refreshingly unwooded. Alcohol 10.5%