In 2015 the Fechner Vineyard experienced near perfect ripening conditions for Gewürztraminer in January, the early start to Spring and Summer meant we picked all three varieties earlier than last year. Late January Rainfall heralded a mild February allowing the East facing Riesling and Weißer Herold block to ripen progressively whilst retaining great natural acidity.
The Fechner brothers’ applauded vineyard is unique for both its spectacular aromatics and unique varietal mix. The blend is 41% hand picked, whole bunch pressed Riesling combined with 38% Gewürztraminer given 12 hours skin contact prior to pressing and 21% Weißer Herold. The cold settled juice parcels were racked without fining prior to co-fermentation to maximise complexity.
Düfte Punkt is an aromatic paradigm-shift. A seamless single-vineyard blend of precise Riesling, spicy Gewürztraminer, and textural Weißer Herold. Striking lychee and turkish delight aromas introduce a complex palate showing lychees, mandarins, minerality and lingering powder-puff of florals.
From the revered Fechner Bros' Northern Eden Valley vineyard in the Moculta Hills adjacent to the limestone quarry, ELIJAH* presents powerful fruit intensity with typical Eden Valley grace; balanced structure and poise are the immediate observations, with striking blue fruits layered over a supple and silky foundation of tannins built via 24 months maturation in LEROI (The oldest operating cooperage in France) 'Harmonie' tight grain French oak, (83% new). Brooding. Intense. Authoritative.
Chaffey Bros. Wine Co. Evangeline: Eden Valley Syrah 2016 (RRP $35 WM $27.90)
$27.90
Showcasing the cool climate elegance of the Southernmost tip of Eden Valley at Springton, this dry grown Syrah vineyard stands out each year during classification. It shows unparalleled poise and perfumed elegance quite distinct from its Barossa Valley floor neighbours whilst retaining remarkable depth of avour and structure.
From Koine greek euangélion means “GOSPEL or GOOD NEWS” (of redemption through Jesus’ life, death and resurrection). Lower yields and a warm, moderate January provided an early start to our harvest in late February. A sudden rain event in early February marked a change to unseasonably mild conditions allowing us to pick vineyards at optimal ripeness without loss of natural acidity.
Highly perfumed it shows wild forest berries & white pepper aromas and a complex palate of fresh Black Berries, peppercorns and refreshing Morello cherries fermented in a 6 tonne open fermenter with 7 days skin contact and twice daily pump-overs. Matured in shaved, seasoned (two to five year old) French oak hogsheads for 11 months.
*A vinous rematch of the famous 1811 BATTLE AT BARROSA RIDGE where Spain and France collided. La Conquista! pitches TEMPRANILLO, GARNACHA & GRACIANO on the attack against the Barossa Old Guard French varieties.
Tempranillo parcels from Gomersal on the Western ridge and Williamstown in the Barossa’s southern hills were individually matured for seven months, in seasoned american and french puncheons and Hogsheads, then blended with garnacha from 50 year old vines in the Lyndoch foothills picked late february, giving the ripe juicy fruit needed to flesh out the structure of Tempranillo’s complex and savoury fruit.
The final Blend is 66% Tempranillo and 30% old vine Garnacha and 4% Graciano. Cherry and Cola aromas mingle with hints of chocolate and spicy florals. A dark yet luminous crimson colour hints at the rich semi-savoury dark cherry and cola palate that finishes with a hint of grenache red cherry juiciness.
A vinous rematch of the famous 1811 BATTLE AT BARROSA RIDGE where Spain and France collided. La Résistance! takes up the fight for the traditional French varieties of the Barossa and pitches gnarly old vine GRENACHE, SYRAH & MOURVÈDRE into defence against the invading foreign marauders.
Grenache makes up 55% of this wine, delivering a Grenache-centric GSM, with elegant Syrah (33%) and spicy Mourvèdre (12%) adding tell-tale definition and structure. The majority of the Grenache is from an old cool Williamstown vineyard, on the border of the Adelaide Hills, which is blended with Grenache from a special Krondorf Road parcel.
Early harvest Syrah is from a 69 year old Ebenezer vineyard and from the Heinrich vineyard in the Lyndoch foothills, which unites with the lovely blue-fruit characters of Syrah from a small Northern Eden Valley vineyard on the outskirts of Angaston.
The remainder of the blend is powerful, spicy Mourvèdre. This is definitely a Grenache-driven GSM! Subtle seasoned oak and caramel lead to a deep-fruited, dark cherry and strawberry palate with supple fine-grain tannin. Gentle refreshing acidity gives great line and drives the brooding and delicious fruit through to a lingering finish.
Chaffey Bros. Wine Co. Not Your Grandma's Riesling 2017 (RRP $22 WM $18.90)
$18.90
The goal with this wine is to show off the virtues of classic EDEN VALLEY RIESLING to fanatical Riesling lovers and the Riesling uninitiated. It demonstrates our preferred DRY AND ZESTY style of Riesling with fruit and acidity in perfect balance.
A single Springton vineyard picked on two separate dates to capture both natural acidity/freshness and intensity of flavour. The two parcels were then cold fermented in a stainless steel tank to preserve purtity of fruit then bottled with only a minimal addition of sulphur dioxide.
Floral, lemon/lime and lychee aromas are followed by intense apple, lime and orange blossom on the palate. The wine has great length of palate with the soft refreshing acidity balancing the intensity of fruit and providing the backbone to enable medium to long term cellaring if so desired.
Chaffey Bros. Wine Co. Not Your Grandma's Rosé Grenache + Mourvedre 2017 (RRP $22 WM $19.90)
$19.90
Welcome to a ROSÉ REVOLUTION!
ROSÉ was once a sweet, coloured white wine - now it’s a legitimate style of its own. Lovingly crafted from REAL ROSÉ VARIETIES. Not Your Grandma’s Rosé is made as a true rosé (picked earlier than typical red wine). 62% of the blend is old vine Grenache from the Lyndoch foothills and from Stockwell, which is co-fermented with 30% of old vine Mourvèdre also from the Lyndoch region. The remaining 8% is an aromatic blend of Riesling, Gewürtztraminer, and Weißer Herold from the Northern Eden Valley, which emphasises the strawberry, musk and turkish delight aromas. Not just for summer!
Enjoy with all foods, from Spencer Gulf prawns to Saskia Beer poultry and charcuterie. Early picking allows for a textural mouthfeel, luminous rose-diamond colour and crisp natural acidity giving great length. Grenache contributes the red berry and strawberry palate with Mourvèdre adding structure and lingering spice.
A celebration of the INTENSITY of Shiraz and the LAYERED STRUCTURE of Cabernet Sauvignon. Great depth of fruit is complemented by the judicious use of fine-grained oak. The backbone (68%) of the blend came from the blue-chip Ehrat vineyard on Krondorf Road, where dry-grown Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon grow side-by-side. The remainder of the blend is Shiraz from Northern Eden Valley and two Shiraz vinyards from Light Pass and Stockwell.
The resulting blend is textured and multidimensional. Structured Krondorf Shiraz contributes rich plum and strawberry red fruits while the Cabernet offers inky black berry fruit and cassis.
A contemporary archetype that demonstrates a FINER STYLE of Barossa Shiraz, showing pure SUBLIME FRUIT EXPRESSION with fine oak playing a supporting role. An incredibly dry winter and spring set the scene for one of the earliest vintage starts in living memory. Perfect ripening conditions in January and February make for another exceptional Barossa Shiraz year.
A careful selection of established low yielding vineyards stretching from the North Barossa townships of Ebenezer and Light Pass through to Lyndoch in Southern Barossa. Matured in new and seasoned French and American oak allowing the vibrant mid-palate of dark and light fruit to come to the fore. Deep crimson/purple in colour with a nose of cedar, spice and plum hinting at the mix of dark fruits and chocolate lurking on the rich structured palate. The wine shows powerful depth of flavour with plush lingering mouthfeel.
Three old-vine sites experienced near perfect ripening conditions for Riesling in January. The early start to Spring & Summer meant we picked earlier than last year. Late January rainfall heralded a mild February allowing the Riesling to ripen progressively while retaining great natural acidity.
In physics the triple point is the thermodynamic conditions at which the solid, liquid and gaseous phases of a substance coexist in equilibrium. Our quest is for the oft-elusive triple point of riesling: precision, texture & balance. riesling from three old vine sites: Springton, flaxman valley & angaston hills. hand-picked. Whole-bunch pressed. 18 hours skins contact. Exotic aromas of Jasmine, honeysuckle and Mandarin oat alluringly from the glass and lead to a texture laden yet delicate palate evoking new season pink lady apples, mandarin with a nely textured nish of mineral bath salts with a subtle edge of refreshing quinine.
In 2015 the Ahrens family’s certified organic vineyard on the outskirts of Springton in Flaxman Valley (Eden Valley’s riesling heartland) experienced near perfect ripening conditions for riesling in January, the early start to Spring and Summer meant we picked earlier than last year. Late January rainfall heralded a mild February allowing the east facing riesling to ripen progressively whilst retaining great natural acidity. Hand picked on two dates a fortnight apart to capture both natural acidity/freshness and intensity of flavour, the fruit was then gently whole bunch pressed and fermented on solids and bottled without fining with only a minimal addition of sulphur dioxide.
Zeitpunkt - aromas of fresh first rainfall on slaty soil with jasmine white florals lead to a natural acidity tensioned palate, it’s dolomite/ Quartz mineral core adorned with a bounty of nutmeg, cardamom and cinnamon spiced apple, peach and feijoa fruits.
