Gomersal || Barossa Valley
Shiraz 100%
14.5% Alc
25 Years Old Vine
Owning the vineyard comes with certain privileges, including being able to snaffle the pick of the crop before John sells the rest to other winemakers. The ‘House Block’ - located adjacent our parent’s house – remains an eternal favourite, and inevitable provides the fruit for this wine. Planted in 2001 in rich red clay/ loam soils over limestone, the gently undulating north west facing slope extends from one of the highest points of our vineyard estate. Perfectly suited to producing Shiraz in the classic Barossa Valley mode; loads of rich fruit flavour and firm structure.
We harvest and destem our fruit in the vineyard, which returns organic matter to promote soil health whilst ensuring retention of pure, vibrant fruit character. Our approach to winemaking is then all about working to retain delicate aromatics whilst creating an elegant and refined structure for the ample fruit flavour that defines Shiraz grown on our estate.
Fermentation is initiated in small 2 tonne fermenters using wild yeasts to promote elegant structure. The fermenting juice is kept at cool temperatures (18-22C) to capture the delicate florals in the wine. Manual punch downs 3-5 times per day combined with 2-3 pump overs over 10-12 days on skins enables gentle extraction of flavour, colour and tannin. The wine is pressed and transferred to new (10-15%) and seasoned 300 litre hogsheads for 18 months. Malolactic fermentation occurs in barrel, with lees retained to assist in building more refined structure whilst adding an extra element of softness to the palate. The wine is transferred to stainless steel for a further 6 months prior to bottling, enabling extended maturation without losing vitality of flavour from excessive time in barrel.
The colour is a glossy dark red with deep purple hues. On the nose, there is a core of dark fruit engulfed by fresh red fruits, pretty florals, a distinctive saline edge akin to ocean spray, and underlying savoury notes of herbs, mocha and shortbread. The palate leads with an explosion of fine red and dark fruit characters of strawberry, rhubarb and blackberry, followed by a supple mid palate of crème caramel and cheesecake leading to long length where the oak plays only a supporting role and is not dominant. A beautiful wine that should age for many years.