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Spinifex

Perpetual Virtuosity from one of the Pioneers of the ‘New Barossa’

We first offered Spinifex’s wines in 2006, writing, “If Spinifex is not one of the most exciting Australian producers to have cropped up in the last decade, then we don’t know much about wine.” Time has been kind to those words, and thanks to this outstanding producer’s continuous progression, our reputation is not only still intact but indeed enhanced! Thanks, Pete.

Spinifex was started by Magali Gely and Peter Schell in 2001. Magali and Peter’s background is the key to understanding the styles of wine they produce. Magali comes from a family that has been growing wine near Montpellier for over ten generations, whilst Peter is a trained oenologist and has made wine in Burgundy, Switzerland, Provence, the Minervois, the Languedoc, Bordeaux and New Zealand. Peter and Magali’s combined backgrounds led to the belief that the vineyard is paramount in the production of unique, authentic wines, and that the wines they produce should not only reflect their sites; showing richness and intensity; but also, be well-balanced and a pleasure to drink.

Pete Schell should be considered one of the pioneers of the ‘new Barossa’, in that he was perhaps the first to truly grasp that seeking ripe fruit at lower Baumé and large format, or at least neutral oak was the way to go in the Barossa. He knew that power came naturally in this part of the world and that his efforts need to be directed at finding perfume and finesse and digestibility. He also grasped the importance of the old parcels of heritage grape varieties (much of which had been grubbed up) and worked hard to lock down what he could. Finally, and most thought-provokingly, he came to realise that the Barossa might well be as good a rosé and white wine region as it is a red wine area and promptly set about producing some of the most exciting examples of these wine styles the Barossa has seen.

While Schell’s wines remain quite unlike the traditional Barossa norm, they remain saturated with what we often call a ‘sense of place’ and maintain an unmistakable Barossan soul.

Twenty years into the story and Pete Schell’s fastidious criteria for site selection combined with his intuitive, hands-off work in the winery continues to yield dramatic results. His wines offer the textural openness and generosity that is the mark of the region, its climate and ancient soils, yet not at the expense of definition, tannic freshness and line.

Alongside their ground-breaking roster of négoce wines, Pete and Magali have realised their lifelong goal of owning and working their own vineyards. And what vineyards they are. The Rostein Vineyard in the Eden Valley was purchased in 2014. To complement the old vine Riesling and Shiraz already in place, they’ve planted Grenache (the highest block in South Australia at 495 metres) Mataro, Counoise and Cinsault. Next came the historic Dominion Vineyard near Vine Vale in 2018. Located in the dead centre of the Barossa Valley, this four-hectare site is home to two parcels of 1910 Grenache and 1918 Shiraz. Both varieties are deep-rooted in thin soils made up of fine, silty sand over friable, red-coloured clay. Translation: this is great, old-school Barossa country. A little Grenache Gris has also been planted. 

Each of these vineyards is entirely hand-pruned, hand-picked and has been managed to a very high standard, namely: biodynamic preparations; regular compost; no synthetics and no chemical fertiliser; no irrigation; and no under-vine management apart from some mulch application and lots of mowing. Despite this exciting evolution, Schell’s unwavering commitment to his growers means the négoce wines will always remain a cornerstone of the Spinifex range. 

Currently Available

Spinifex Garçon 2022

Spinifex Garçon 2022

Celebrating the legacy of Barossa Valley Grenache, Pete Schell sources this wine from four dry-grown, old-vine parcels in the Barossa Valley with vine ages ranging from 35-100 years. The winemaking was very much in the traditional Spinifex mould: slow, natural fermentations with gentle pump-overs and foot-stomping. With a focus on freshness and drinkability allied to a supple core of Barossan generosity and depth of flavour, the 2022 Garçon was crafted with 40% whole bunches and fermentations took place in stainless steel and concrete. Maturation took place on light lees in a selection of vessels including steel vats, seasoned, thick-staved 600-litre demi-muids, with an additional stint in 2,500 litre foudre. Bottled unfined and without filtration, eight months after harvest. A typically evocative example of a Grenache that values freshness rather than power, this is energetic and lively with aromas and flavours of red ripe summer berries, earthy spice and sweet blue florals, egged on by refreshing acidity and a gentle nip of tannin. How Pete Schell continues producing such goodness at this price is beyond us, but we’re mighty thankful. Over to Mr Mattinson…

A typically evocative example of a Grenache that values freshness rather than power, this is energetic and lively with aromas and flavours of red ripe summer berries, earthy spice and sweet blue florals, egged on by refreshing acidity and a gentle nip of tannin. How Pete Schell continues producing such goodness at this price is beyond us, but we’re mighty thankful. Over to Mr Mattinson…

“Some people love a bit of reduction in their reds; other don’t. I’m in the former camp, and this wine plays that angle beautifully. Raspberries and rust, throws of dry spice, twiggy herb notes, licorice and that smoky, earthen, slightly burnt reductive character. The flavours come both tense and sheeted; it’s a light-ish wine of juicy, taut finesse. Pricing is spot on. This is deliciously good. Personally, in an ideal world, I’d be up to my neck in this.”
93 points, Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front
Spinifex Garçon 2022
Spinifex Tannat 2019

Spinifex Tannat 2019

While the origins of this variety lie in the Basque country, Tannat is best known for its role in the strapping, ‘hairs-on-your-chest’ kinda reds of Madiran in France’s southwest. Like the 2019 Chardonnay, this is a one-off release as it also came from the Adelaide Hills Bowe Lees vineyard which was destroyed by the bushfires in 2020.. Winemaker, Pete Shiell, picks up the story: “This is certainly a wine made in the vineyard. Multiple passes to thin shoots, manually managed canopy, dual green harvests and hand harvesting of bunches delivered fruit that we think shows the best of the variety and the site.” The grapes were fully de-stemmed, fermented with indigenous yeasts in open fermenters, hand plunged and spent 10 days on skins prior to pressing. It was raised on light lees in thick-staved puncheons (one-third new) for 10 months prior to bottling. As you would expect from the variety, this is an amply flavoured number and yet surprisingly light on its feet. With bright fruit and dark cherry/iodine/ink notes, racy acidity and firm, spicy tannins, it is a compact and mid-weighted red that is both  delicious and distinctive! It “rarely escapes a rib eye,” chez Spinifex, which makes a whole lot of sense.

As you would expect from the variety, this is an amply flavoured number and yet surprisingly light on its feet. With bright fruit and dark cherry/iodine/ink notes, racy acidity and firm, spicy tannins, it is a compact and mid-weighted red that is both delicious and distinctive! It “rarely escapes a rib eye,” chez Spinifex, which makes a whole lot of sense.

Spinifex Tannat 2019
Spinifex Aglianico 2020

Spinifex Aglianico 2020

Pete Schell's Aglianico is drawn from vines rooted in the quartz clay and granite soils of Caj Amadio's vineyard near Kersbrook in the northern Adelaide Hills, at 300 metres above sea level. Aglianico is already a late-ripening variety—more so at this kind of altitude—and these are always Spinifex's last vines to be harvested. Pete says, “Aglianico has shown a great affinity for this site with the fruit ripening very late, typically just before the break in the season, with deep flavours, fresh tannins and high natural acids.” The fruit is fully destemmed and the fermenting wine spent two weeks on its skins before being matured in large-format casks, thick-stave demi-muids and stainless steel. To capture the variety’s perfume and bright fruit, it was bottled unfiltered after 10 months. With the exception of a little sulphur dioxide, nothing was added.  

Spinifex Aglianico 2020
Spinifex Syrah 2022

Spinifex Syrah 2022

This is Pete Schell’s higher-toned, red-fruited and more floral expression of the Barossa—a yin to Bête Noir’s yang, you could say. To this end, Schell sources from up to 10 different plots throughout the Barossa and Eden Valleys from “generally higher, cooler sites, where earlier harvesting gives wines with bright, savoury, spicy fruit expression and a textural freshness”, according to Schell. Vine ages vary from 25 to 100 years.As with most of his reds, Schell employed various techniques, with different proportions of bunches (30%) and berries. Soft extraction was the aim, and the ferments were allowed to relax with little agitation. Pete sums up the reasoning behind his gentle approach simply: “It’s easier to overdo it than underdo it in the Barossa.” Short macerations were followed by ferments in stainless steel, concrete and mostly large, seasoned oak for eight months. It’s another deeply cast yet remarkably elegant Barossa red from this master of balance. Dark fruits, spice, earth and meat are matched by vibrant acidity and fine, sinewy tannins. Terrific value as per! 

Spinifex Syrah 2022
Spinifex Miette Shiraz 2021

Spinifex Miette Shiraz 2021

Miette is the French word for crumbs, and while this label started its life crafted from the (delicious) off-cuts that fell from Spinifex’s top table, today the wine is made from fruit sourced specifically for this wine.The core of the fruit came from five key vineyards in Ebenezer, Bethany, Tanunda and Moppa—serious Barossa terroirs that have delivered bold, honest and deep Shiraz flavours and structure. Schell has also blended in some wines from the higher country of the Barossa Ranges and Eden Valley to bring freshness. All of the grapes were hand-harvested and fermented wild in open top stainless steel and oak fermenters, with approximately 20% whole bunches. Aging was undertaken in a range of French oak vessels of 225 to 2,500 litres capacity, and some in steel. The wine was bottled 20 months after vintage.

Deep purple-red colour; aromas of vanilla and black-cherry, a trace of dark chocolate, while the palate is lean-ish and nervy with some acidity noted, the palate elegantly styled and weighted, with abundant soft fleshy tannins. A nice touch of spice, too. Remarkable value.”
91 points, Huon Hooke, The Real Review
Spinifex Miette Shiraz 2021
Spinifex Grenache Gris 2023

Spinifex Grenache Gris 2023

Pete and Magali purchased their Dominion Vineyard near Vine Vale in the heart of the Barossa Valley in 2018. The low-fertility, four-hectare site sits at 285 metres, giving small crops marked by intense flavour and remarkable aromatic depth. Centurion Grenache and Shiraz vines (planted in 1908 and 1918) live in these sandy, gravelly and red clay soils, and in 2020, a small plot of just over an acre was planted to Grenache Gris. Old-vine Grenache has an exemplary track record around Vine Vale―neighbouring vines include Cirillo’s from the 1850s and Yalumba’s 1898 plantings―so, for Pete and Magali, planting Grenache Gris was a logical choice. 2023 was the first season to give a viable yield for a straight bottling of Grenache Gris. Pete left the fruit on skins for a few hours before pressing and fermentation in old puncheons, followed by eight months’ maturation on lees in foudre. There’s a lovely big whack flavour here: salty white peaches, fleshy orange citrus, some blossom and a hint of buttery richness. Then, the texture is plush and grippy with fresh, driving length. It’s a killer first release that will shine with salt and fat. 

“Time in old oak was important here because it’s added texture to what is, at heart, a structural white wine. It’s a wine of skin and bones, stones and spices, its dryness a key part of its appeal. We’re almost into brine territory here, or stones sitting in a saline solution, perhaps. It knows what it wants, and it wants for food. This is a good, interesting wine, worth buying and drinking, and future releases will be worth following.”
92 points, Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front
Spinifex Grenache Gris 2023
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Halliday Wine Companion Top 100 Wineries 2023

#79: Spinifex

“Wonderful to touch base again with Spinifex wines. In the cornucopia of avant garde producers, sometimes it’s great to look back at those who were there at the genesis, and revel in their consistency and continuation at a high level.” Mike Bennie, The Wine Front

“Last year he was a finalist for Gourmet Traveller Winemaker of the Year. Small wonder Spinifex has five red stars in the 2021 Halliday Wine Companion. If all this isn’t enough, the prices are a breath of fresh air.” James Halliday, The Weekend Australian Magazine

“Pete and his partner Magali Gely operate what I think is the best new-wave of small-scale Barossa wine companies to emerge at the beginning of the 21st century… These weren’t big, blockbuster, showy wines designed to impress. They were wines that managed to take the best of the Barossa’s sometimes forgotten varietal traditions and fuse them onto a very European flavour sensibility.” Max Allen, The Future Makers

Country

Australia

Primary Region

Barossa, South Australia

People

Winemaker: Peter Schell

Availability

VIC, NSW, ACT, QLD, TAS, WA

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