De Trafford Syrah 393 2009

Deep, dark red colour. Big, rich spicy blue & blackberry nose. Great intensity and complexity. Rich, ripe dark fruit and pepper and spice palate. Big, mouthfilling tannins. Slightly sweet fruit comes out as the wine opens up.

Drink 2014 to 2021

Best with a thick chunk of steak on the braai.

variety : Shiraz [ Shiraz 100% ]
winemaker : David Trafford
wine of origin : Stellenbosch
analysis : alc : 16.04 % vol  rs : 3.1 g/l  pH : 3.65  ta : 5.1 g/l  va : 0.64 g/l  so2 : 9 mg/l  fso2 : 37 mg/l  
type : Red   wooded
pack : Bottle  closure : Cork  

ageing : 50% new fine grained, slow toasted small French oak was used.
Time in barrel 20 months with only 2 gentle rackings.

in the vineyard : About ½ from one block 14 yr old vines on 7 wire vertical trellis with moveable foliage wires. Clones SH21A; SH1A & SH99 all on 101-14 rootstock. 5000 vines / hect. “Mont Fleur” vineyard – high altitude Helderberg mountain NW facing slope.

Steeply sloping site with rocky, granitic based Hutton soil.

Yield 5 tons / hect. (36hL/ha)

About ½ from our new “Tip Top Mont Fleur” vineyard planted immediately above the existing Shiraz vineyard in 2003. Soil and aspect similar, though a little steeper and stonier. Clones SH470 (sourced from Cote Rotie); SH174 (sourced from Hermitage) and SH747 all on 101-14 (low vigour) rootstock. Trellis system and planting density as older vineyard above.

Yield 6 tons / hect. (43hL/ha)

about the harvest: Typical cold, wet winter followed by a normal growing season with enough rain and warm weather to produce good, balanced growth. A hot, dry ripening period without excessive stress, producing concentrated wines with great structure. One of the best vintages of the decade for the patient.

A massive fire prior to harvest meant a very stressful start to the harvest, but also relief that we were spared any real damage.

Harvest date: 28 / 2 / 09 – 13 / 3 / 09 @ 24.6°- 26.9° Balling.

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Shiraz
Shiraz
Shiraz
Shiraz