Taylor's St Andrews Shiraz 2017

Taylor's St Andrews Shiraz 2017

Named after the historic property first established in 1892. A true reflection of the terroir, St Andrews wines exemplify the very best of handcrafted Clare Valley winemaking.

REGION

Clare Valley

VINTAGE CONDITIONS

In the Clare Valley, rainfall was below average for the season, but it was not the amount that had the biggest impact; it was the timing. Mother Nature saw fit to dole out just the right amount of water at just the right time for maximum positive impact on the vine’s health and importantly, the quality of the fruit produced. In fact, this was just one of the factors at play when it comes to the vintage being lauded as one of the greats. Firstly, the vines were ‘stress free’ heading into the winter period, creating the potential for a superior crop. Secondly, conditions were ideal during flowering and then lastly, the threat of frost did not eventuate. All these conditions combined to create what called be described as ‘the perfect storm’ for an excellent vintage.

VINIFICATION

Once harvested, the grapes for this wine were taken the short distance to the winery where they were gently de-stemmed to protect the vibrant fruit characters and minimise any maceration and extraction of harsh tannins. The fruit was then transferred to headless barrels and inoculated with a specialist Shiraz yeast strain for fermentation. The fermenting must was hand-plunged twice daily to aid gentle extraction and then the wine was left to soak on skins for a further 2 weeks. Once pressed, the wine was then transferred back to the same oak barrels to complete its secondary malolactic fermentation. After completing malolactic fermentation, the wine was racked off lees prior to final blending. The blended wine was then transferred to high quality water-bent American oak barrels and matured for 20 months prior to filtering and bottling.

WINEMAKER NOTES

At release, the wine has a concentrated ruby red colour with a dark mahogany hue to the edge. On the nose, the wine is complex and enticing with red berry fruits, dark chocolate, dusty spice, and hints of charcuterie, cigar box and roasted coffee. On the palate, the wine is rich and complex with layers of flavour. Dark berry fruits combine with lashings of coffee, chocolate and spice from high quality oak. The fruit and oak weight create a multidimensional palate which is defined with well-balanced, elegant tannins. This is a very generous wine with textural complexity and long, persistent flavours.

CELLARING NOTES

This wine is evolving well at release yet should cellar well for 10-15 years or possibly longer.

TECHNICAL DETAILS
Alcohol 15.1%
Acid 6.68g/litre
PH 3.4
Residual Sugar 1.1