Nose
Typical cool-climate Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon aromas of lively tropical fruits and fresh herbaceous grassy characters make up an intense bouquet.
Palate
The palate is fresh and lively with classic Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon characters and a fine structure that are an indication both of the quality of the vintage and of the use of only free-run juice.
Growing Conditions
The vintage of 2021 is a bit of a blur in the memory with constant decisions made on the fly at all hours of the day given the unusual weather conditions across Margaret River, and to a lesser extent the Great Southern of Western Australia.
It was a great start to the season with the first really wet winter for several years and therefore good soil moisture entering spring and summer. This is even more important for ‘dry grown’ (unirrigated) vineyards such as Hay Shed Hill. There were positive signs at budburst with potentially better crop levels than the last two years.
Spring was mild with Chardonnay from Block 6 and Block 8 at Hay Shed Hill being harvested in the first week of February. There was a small break until the avalanche of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon started. In this middle to late part of February and throughout March we experienced multiple episodes of rain, some of these falls being heavy. This sort of weather is rare in a Margaret River summer requiring harvest plans to be constantly reviewed and updated.
Given the conditions I am thrilled with the result, all whites and rosés were pristine and clean, perhaps a little lighter in body than many years but wonderfully fresh and pure in character.
When we got to reds in March and throughout April the challenges were greater. The requirement for full ripe fruit flavours and depth of body in red wine means the grapes need to be left on the vine longer therefore with increased risk. But we were protected by the wine gods and got all the Hay Shed Hill reds off the vine before the season broke with a vengeance with heavy mid-April rainfall.
I think it will be a classic year more closely aligned with Margaret River wines of the early and mid-90s as opposed to the bigger wines of the early part of the century. And I think that is a good thing.
Michael Kerrigan
Winemaking
Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon grapes from the Hay Shed Hill vineyard were used in making this wine. Only free run juice was used, this component of the juice is the highest in quality with the most intense fruit expression and the lowest in undesirable phenolic skin characters. Fermentation in stainless steel tanks at low temperature without the use of oak preserved and highlighted the finer fruit characters of these aromatic varieties.
Appearance
The wine displays fresh green tinges to a very pale straw colour.