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Bannockburn produces one of the most distinctive expressions of Shiraz in Australia, which can be attributed almost entirely to the site. Fruit for this year’s Bannockburn Shiraz is drawn predominately from vines in the south-facing Winery Block (planted in 1990) and Range Block (1974), with some declassified, high-density De La Roche (planted in 2007) in the mix. The sites possess soils of mainly volcanic scoria over basalt, clay and loam with a limestone-clay base.
Handpicked parcels of fruit were wild fermented separately with approximately 10% whole bunch overall including a portion of carbonic maceration. After pressing the wine was racked to a combination of hogsheads and puncheons of which 10% was new oak. The wine was left undisturbed for 10 months, then racked to 1200l old oak vats for another 6 months maturation prior to blending and bottling. Matt Holmes has pared back the new oak and gradually introduced more carbonic influence in his Shiraz. He feels the mature Winery Block has inherent savoury qualities (due to the clay/limestone, old vines and poor soils), and this treatment lifts the impression of brightness and fruit purity.