Hay Shed Hill|Margaret River|Premium Wines

Vintage:	2006
Growing Region:	Margaret River 100%
Grape Varieties:	Shiraz 85% Tempranillo 85%

Grape ripening for the vintage 2006 across the entire south west of WA was defined and affected by the extraordinary weather of late spring in 2005 with all early stages such as flowering and fruit set delayed by, in many cases, up to 4 weeks. The cool and intermittingly wet summer has not allowed the vines to catch up to any extent with ripening being later than ever experienced before. The cool and mild conditions produced tighter and more elegant whites with riper flavours than the sugar would suggest due primarily to the length of time on the vine. In summary 2006 produced elegant spicy Shiraz and ripe savoury Tempranillo

Winemaking

Both Shiraz and Tempranillo were de-stemmed and fermented separately in open vessels with extensive pump over cap management to aid colour and flavour extraction as well as optimize the tannin development. The wines were pressed off skins and matured in French oak barriques, approximately one third new oak with the balance one and two year old. After 15 months in barrel the wines were blended according to taste.

Colour

 Vibrant red/black colour with a deep opaque centre.

Nose

A fascinating blend of violets and spicy, black pepper notes of the Shiraz with the more savoury licorice aromas from the Tempranillo.

Palate

Shiraz and Tempranillo are wonderful partners; two old varieties coming together to make a new vibrant blend. The Shiraz brings all the Australian fruit power, deep plum flavours with a peppery edge in a fleshy fruit sweet palate. The Tempranillo adds savoury elements and complex tannin structure to the wine resulting in a more complete wine than either of the two components could make on their own. This wine has all the sweet fleshiness that we expect in Shiraz with the added benefit of textural complexity.

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