Evans & Tate Classic Shiraz 2017

VINTAGE: A very distinct vintage - the dry, warm spring and summer meant it was tracking early but a tropical rain event in January pushed back harvest dates slightly - the reds very much appreciated this rainfall. Overall, the reds looked exceptional with higher yields than in 2016 meaning better vine balance and rate of ripening. WINEMAKING: The fruit from each vineyard block was tasted every 3 days to monitor flavour development to ensure each parcel of fruit was picked at its optimum. Each parcel was picked separately during the coolest part of the night to ensure the fruit reached the winery at the coolest temperature possible. The fruit was cold soaked which helped produce a fruit driven, aromatic wine with a lush, soft texture. During fermentation, each batch was thoroughly aerated with the grape seeds being removed from the ferment. This process helped produced a fine, softly textured wine style. Once fermented and pressed, the pressings were returned into the free-run to provide structure and body to the end wine. A select batch of wine was racked separately off lees to two to five year old French oak barriques and hogsheads to mature for 9 months. Following blending, the wine was lightly fined using fresh, local free-range egg whites and filtered once prior to bottling. TASTING NOTES COLOUR: Deep crimson with vivid purple hues. AROMA: The wine exhibits ripe cassis, red plums and salted liquorice aromas. High notes of cedary oak and violet add further complexity and frame this wine's underlying graphite-like minerality. PALATE: The palate unfolds in a myriad of layers of red fruit with dark chocolate nuances further enhanced by subtle sweet oak characters. The long and flavoursome finish is well supported by powder-fine juicy tannins. CELLARING: This finely structured Margaret River wine will continue to improve over the next 5-7 years FOOD PAIRING: Western Australia lamb with garlic mash.