2024 SPRINGS HILL VINEYARD SHIRAZ

Single Vineyard Shiraz, fruit sourced from ‘Springs Hill Vineyard’, Blewitt Springs, McLaren Vale grown by the Whaite family

Two dry grown plantings, 1998 on Holocene sand, North/South aspect 205-210m altitude, 1975 on sand and ironstone, North-East/South-West aspect 195-205m. Sustainable Winegrowing Australia Certified Vineyard.

Hand-picked in two batches on 12th and 13th of March. 20% whole bunch foot trod in the two fermenters, remainder destemmed whole berry and chilled to 5’C on top. Just plunged/mixed for 5 days of cold soak until wild ferment took off. During peak ferment we pumped over two-three times a day until zero Baume. Shiraz needs a good amount of air during ferment, especially wild ferments, and unlike Grenache, it can handle the oxidation to help bring the breadth of colour, flavour and tannin we desire. 12 days on skins, pressed to tank for sugar dryness, settled and racked with fluffy lees to French oak puncheons (approximately 14% new) for wild malo and 10 months maturation. 

Our seventh release of this wine and perhaps our finest to date. We make no secret of admiring the Shiraz from the Northern Rhone and certain producers where site flavours are consistent and the season they grew in the only difference when looking at intensity of flavours and tannin. This leads us to our 2024… purple floral notes of violet and lilac, fresh blueberry with an array of peppered spice, this year moving more to black. It carries the signature medium frame but 2024 delivered an undeniable extra level of volume to fruit weight, incredibly tight and black core with tannin that will deliver a long life. One to hold onto for quite a while… if you can resist its immediate allure. 

14% Alc.

Vegan friendly

750mL