Our wine.

2023 proved an extended yet very rewarding vintage in Western Australia and the Swan Valley. Optimal, dry weather conditions paired with the absence of any significant climatic challenges or disease pressure set the scene for a moderate season, ideal for gentle, consistent ripening across all varieties.

Winter temperatures were lower than average, which made for a quick senescence and sound dormancy for the vines. There was markedly less-than-average rain; however, the vineyards received sufficient supply to recharge soil moisture levels, paving the way for a promising growing season ahead.

The growing season began with a late budburst after a relatively cold winter that pushed vine development back by about 2-3 weeks. Spring saw less rain and cooler conditions than usual, resulting in a slow start to canopy growth and an extended flowering period for early blooming red varietals like Grenache in the Swan Valley.  January brought consistently warm, sunny days, which saw vines start to catch up nicely on their development and in the Swan Valley, provide plenty of sunshine with limited extreme heat than normal years. `February maintained the consistent, but not overwhelming heat to a point of ripening.

The Grenache fruit was sourced from a single vineyard site in Baskerville in the Swan Valley wine region on the edge of the foothills of the darling scarp. The vines are 68 years and the soil profile is sandy with some gravel. The fruit was hand harvested in two hand picks on February 12 and February 19. Both parcels were refrigerated over night prior to being transported down to our Margaret River winery for processing.

The vine age of this block is mature enough that little intervention is required so we had the luxury of picking at two times to build layers of flavour and allow for flavour intensity, tannins and sugars to develop with balance and harmony. This Grenache parcel has delivered elegant power and freshness with a lovely tension of lovely natural acidity, from an excellent vintage.

The two parcels of hand harvested fruit were each destemmed with open rollers to allow for minimal maceration of the berries to encourage a portion of carbonic maceration. The whole berries instead were transferred to large open stainless steel fermenters with gentle pump overs occurring twice a day until dry, when it was pressed to tank to settle and then transferred to large format neutral oak for six months of maturation, prior to being lightly fined, filtered and then bottled in Spring time.

In a glass this wine is translucent crimson colour which is celebrated in the flint bottle. On the nose the wine presents with red lollies and a light spicy edge with gentle orange citrus aromatics. The palate presents with confectioned characters however is balanced off with spice, Campari notes, and a crunchiness on the finish.