Nose
Lifted floral aromas with hints of fresh strawberries and raspberries.
Palate
A soft, textural and savoury palate displaying fruit flavours of light, fresh summer berries finishing with a clean, refreshing acidity
Growing Conditions
Following several years of early vintages and the exceptionally late 2017, it was very nice to have a 'normal' season again. Excellent budburst across all varieties was followed by a beautifully warm November, which provided ideal conditions for flowering and very good fruit set. Summer proved to be quite mild with just a few hot days, particularly in December, which was also one of the wettest recorded. Cool, dry conditions in the lead-up to harvest enabled fruit to ripen slowly, accumulating intense varietal flavours whilst retaining natural acidity and our whites were all harvested in excellent condition. The warmer March weather saw the reds ripen beautifully and they were harvested under clear, sunny skies through March and early April with ripe, concentrated flavours and excellent fine-grained powdery tannins. The two key Shiraz vineyards which contributed to this wine are planted to different clones. Ullingers Block 8 is planted to 12SBVRC clone and gives earthy, savoury notes to the wine while Weightmans Block 3, planted to the PT15 clone, offers a brighter, fresh berry component. A small percentage of Merlot is also utilised for its fresh berry and dried herb characters as well as Sauvignon Blanc, which provides fresh aromatic lift. All these Estate vineyards are planted on the classic gravelly, stony soils for which the region is famous - producing balanced vines with moderate yields.
Winemaking
Produced primarily from a combination of designated Shiraz and Merlot vineyards. The fruit was gently pressed to extract a free run component with minimal colour. One parcel of Shiraz was blended with some Sauvignon Blanc to lift aromatic profile. All parcels were left on yeast lees until blending in May and bottling in July.
Appearance
Pale Pink
