The Barossa Valley is the source of our Shiraz. With it’s hot, dry conditions and fairly level valley floor and undulating hills, this appellation is generally recognized as the best red wine district in Australia. Our Kalimna property is located next door to the traditional Penfolds Grange “mother source” vineyard. The unforgiving soils of this area are well known to produce very low yields, loose clusters and extremely small berries. Classic, ultra premium Shiraz territory!

Winemaker Daryl Groom (formerly senior red winemaker at Penfolds with responsibility for the iconic Grange from 1994 to 1990) looks for a little less wood in his Shiraz than is typical of Australian Shiraz. He wants a wine that is rich, but not overly jammy, tannic, or oaky in flavor so that it can show off the spicy, anise, berry flavors - true varietal characters in the grape. He is looking for a firm, fleshy structure and a fine texture. Daryl achieves his results by traditional and gentle winemaking methods: fermentation is small batches, punched down in open-top vessels; a skin maceration of only 6 days; minimal handling throughout and aging in American oak (half new, half 1 year old). Careful barrel selection increases the quality and consistency of our Shiraz.

Overall, the 2004 vintage in Australia proved to be quite a challenge for winemakers and viticulturists. A roller-coaster ride, in fact. After the drought conditions of 2003 the high winter rainfall that followed was most welcome. We were off to a great start, and our hopes soared. In contrast, December, mid-season for vine growth, was the hottest we had seen in 10 years. January brought mild, windy weather but was followed by searing heat in February. Thankfully toward the end of the month the heat wave broke, and the rest of the vintage saw cool, sunny days that allowed the fruit to ripen slowly under much more gentle conditions. Harvest itself was late, well into April.

The 2004 Shiraz typifies our desire to allow the vineyard and the climatic conditions of the year to be expressed in the resultant wine. This wine is deep and rich in color, interestingly exhibiting characters of white and black peppercorn, classic characteristics of Shiraz grown in cooler climates. This is representative, along with slightly lower p/h and alcohol content, of the mild, cool finish to the season. The wine is earthy with plum undertones and has beautiful, natural acidity evident on the finish. This is a delicious food friendly wine that will age for many years. Enjoy!