These two varieties are planted as a Field Blend on the Saxonvale Vineyard. The entire Hunter has Shiraz vines, but we are not sure who had the foresight to plant the Mourvèdre back in the late 1960’s. However, we now have this vineyard and are glad they did. The original plantings were trained as ‘bush vines’ and the variety mix is about 85% Shiraz and 15% Mourvèdre. We first released this wine in 2005 and it is a consistent favourite with a real cult following.

2018 WHITE LABEL TIMBERVINES TEMPRANILLO GRACIANO SHIRAZ

Inspired by some great Spanish wines and their versatility with food, we pioneered the inter-planting (field blend) of these 3 varieties together here in the Hunter Valley in 2010. Picked at the same time and vinified together as a single wine we find the Tempranillo provides the rich fruit, Graciano gives lifted floral notes and acidity and the Shiraz provides the tannin and extra structure.

2018 WHITE LABEL SAXONVALE CABERNET SAUVIGNON

The Hunter Valley is mainly known for Shiraz, not so much for the other noble variety of France, Cabernet Sauvignon. Having said that, a handful of Hunter producers make excellent Cabernet when planted with the right clone to the right soils and we think we are one of them. Our old vines ensure yields are kept low which allows the fruit to achieve full ripeness at lower alcohols compared with cabernet grown in other warm climate regions.

2018 WHITE LABEL FORDWICH HILL SHIRAZ

Hunter Valley Shiraz is generally a lower alcohol more savoury alternative to most big Australian Shiraz. Featuring medium bodied soft tannins and more elegance and acid than most. I select the grapes for this limited volume shiraz from the volcanic soil vineyard of the easterly facing Fordwich Hill. This aspect allows for the accumulation of great flavour whilst maintaining the natural acidity of the wine.

Growing Season

Small bunches and intensely flavoured fruit with bright aromatics was a characteristic of the 2019 vintage, resulting in beautifully ripe and healthy fruit that we hand picked in mid January. Fruit quality was exceptionally high.

Vineyard

Whilst looking for diversity in shiraz within our vineyards, 9 years ago Andrew asked some his mates who owned Heritage Vineyards in Pokolbin for some buds to graft over a 30-hectare block of 50 year old Shiraz vines. We grafted 6 different clones of Shiraz onto the 50yr old rootstocks, and 9 years later we now have six different clones producing some very interesting results. The BC4 block always stood out from other blocks due to its vibrancy of fruit and soft framed tannins and is the first block of these heritage clones that we have bottled separately as a standalone wine.

Winemaking

We use ‘partial carbonic maceration’ which is a fermentation technique made famous from the Beaujolais region in France. It results in a complex, bright and fruit forward red wine with soft, velvety tannins. The wine was placed in a mixture of 3 and 5-year-old French oak puncheons (500 litres) for six months before bottling early to be enjoyed as a fresh, fruit driven style.

Tasting Notes

Bright purple in colour with lifted aromas of blueberries, blackberries, and violets. The palate has loads of vibrant blue and black fruits, a touch of liquorice and juicy mulberries. The tannins are soft and silky, and the finish is refreshing.

Wine Composition

pH                                                          3.45

Titratable Acidity                                  6.9g/L

Alcohol                                                  13.5%

Residual Sugar                                     <1g/L

Food Match

Steak tartare with toasted brioche and quails eggs

Cellaring Potential

10 to 15 years

2018 WHITE LABEL FORDWICH HILL SHIRAZ

Hunter Valley Shiraz is generally a lower alcohol more savoury alternative to most big Australian Shiraz. Featuring medium bodied soft tannins and more elegance and acid than most. I select the grapes for this limited volume shiraz from the volcanic soil vineyard of the easterly facing Fordwich Hill. This aspect allows for the accumulation of great flavour whilst maintaining the natural acidity of the wine.

Growing Season

Low yielding, high quality, clean fruit at full ripeness was a hallmark of the excellent 2018 vintage. The 2018 vintage had the earliest start we have ever experienced with the first fruit coming in on the 4^th of January. Our Fordwich Hill Shiraz was hand picked the second week in February and showcased great flavour and tannin balance.

Vineyard

This Shiraz is grown on our Fordwich Hill vineyard, a small 3-hectare Easterly facing block planted on red volcanic soils in the early 1970’s. The age of these vines result in natural low yields and intensely concentrated fruit. 

Winemaking

We ferment using partial ‘carbonic maceration’ to enhance the bright fruit aromatics and give a complex red wine with smooth tannins. The wine was placed in a mixture of 1 and 2-year-old French oak barriques for 12 months.

Tasting Notes

Bright blueberry aromatics a distinct flavour we see each year from the fruit off our Fordwich Hill vineyard. The palate is full of raspberry and mulberry fruits with a touch of chocolate framed with subtle oak and velvety tannins.

Wine Composition

pH                                                          3.44

Titratable Acidity                                7.2g/L

Alcohol                                                  13.5%

Residual Sugar                                     < 1g/L

Vine Age

50 years

Food Match

Dry Aged Waygu, Potato Gratin, Béarnaise

Cellaring Potential

20 + years

Accolades

Gold medal NSW Wine Show

96 points James Halliday

Silver Medal NSW Wine Show

94 points Mike Bennie The Wine Front

92 points Nick Butler The Real Review

Ripasso is the Italian term used in reference to the re-passing of a wine from one ferment over the skins of another. In our case we have passed some of our 2016 vintage shiraz from our 40-year-old Timbervines vineyard over the skins of several different varieties from the 2017 vintage. The mystery for the drinker is to figure out what skins we have used for the re-fermentation.

Growing Season

The 2016 vintage was a cooler vintage In the Hunter Valley producing more elegant softer styles of Shiraz. This base wine was passed over the 2017 vintage which was a warmer vintage and enabled us to build more body and stronger tannins In to the 2016 base wine.

Vineyard

The fruit that makes up the Shiraz base wine from 2016 was handpicked off 40yr old vines grown on the rich red volcanic soils of the Fordwich Sill. We choose a block that has the ability to build more complexity in to the fruit. The skins that we pass this wine over are chosen based on the vineyards that are performing best that particular year, as well as what additional nuances of tannin and flavour will complement the base wine to build complexity.

Winemaking

Only in very good vintages like 2016 do I keep a small volume of top-quality shiraz in reserve in oak to re-ferment it over another later excellent vintage. It must be a vintage where we get perfectly ripe fruit to ensure the finished wine has taken up only ripe tannins and fruit characters. The base wine from 2016 had plush fruit and elegant aromatics with medium tannins and it was re-fermented over different varieties in the 2017 vintage. This has given the wine lots of dense tannins and deep complex fruit characters. It has spent nearly two years in small new and two-year old French oak barriques. This wine is fun to make and is different every year we make it!

Tasting Notes

Medium - Full bodied displaying a subtle combination of spice, plush black forest fruit and tobacco like coupled with nuances of violet and blue fruits and firm velvety tannins.

Wine Composition

pH                                                           3.46

Titratable Acidity                                   6.7g/L

Alcohol                                                   13.5%

Residual Sugar                                       <1g/L 

Food Match

Wagyu brisket, mushroom, celeriac and glazed onion

Cellaring Potential

15 - 20 years

Accolades

Silver Medal Hunter Valley Wine Show 2019

Silver Medal Sydney Wine Show 2019