variety : Shiraz [ 90% Shiraz, 9% Mourvèdre, 1% Viognier ]
winemaker : Matthew Copeland
wine of origin :
analysis : alc : 14.0 % vol rs : 3.8 g/l pH : 3.51 ta : 6.1 g/l
type : Red style : Dry
pack : Bottle closure : Cork
in the vineyard : Initially only the younger vines were used for this blend, but as the vines are no longer so young, we select the blocks and clones which provide more aromatics and a more accessible palate.
The vineyards are planted on well weathered granite derived soils on south and southeast facing slopes. In total six clones of Shiraz were planted, all making different contributions to the final wine.
Highly selective hand picking procedures are implemented to ensure that only the best fruit arrives at the winery. At picking, flavours of raspberry and blackcurrant were present in the fruit.
in the cellar : After being chilled overnight, the previous day's fruit goes through preliminary bunch sorting, after which the grapes are destemmed and berry sorting is applied. The sorted berries drop straight into open-top tanks where cold soaking takes place.
Cool fermentation with hand plunging/mixing allows the winemaker to produce a more elegant, fruit-driven profile. After fermentation, the wine is transferred to barrel for malolactic fermentation softens and enhance the subtle characteristics of the wine. Older French oak barrels were used for maturation, so as not to over-wood the wine and disrupt in subtle balance. After 11 months in barrel, the wine was blended and bottled.