Additional information
| Weight | 1.467 kg |
|---|
2023 Clarendon Hills Romas Old Vine Grenache
$150.00 / 750ml bottle
Nestled away in the upper reaches of Blewitt Springs is Clarendon Hills flagship Romas Old Vine Grenache vineyard. The ancient hillside site plays home to some of the oldest plantations in all of McLaren Vale, with the Romas vineyard planted circa 1920. Located on a steep, Eastern facing, rocky site with a 45 degree gradient and terraced rows comprised of 105 year old pre-phylloxera grenache vines. The vines are gnarly and twisted and extremely low yielding due to the vine age but also the ancient terroir beneath. The soil has been dated between 750 and 1600 million years old by the McLaren Vale Geology Survey and is riddled with coarsely pebbled silica, quartz and ironstone mixed throughout sand and loam. The site receives only cool, morning sunshine to ripen the 105 year old vines to perfection every year. The Clarendon Hills winemaking team prizes the fruit that we receive from his patch for its signature small berries and bunches with extremely thick skins that forge incredibly exotic and vivid flavours. The vines are carefully hand picked and returned to the Clarendon Hills winery located in Blewitt Springs less than a kilometre away via slow moving tractors to ensure the grapes are in mint condition upon return to the winery. The grapes are then de-stemmed and crushed and cold soaked. The must is then wild yeast fermented in stainless steel tanks and pressed to French Oak and left on less for an extended period across 18 months of careful French oak maturation. The winemakers prefer to use only highly seasoned vessels to preserve the grapes natural tannin structure and forge a style that ultimately enhances the purity and aromatics of the world class 105 year old Grenache fruit. The wine is then carefully bottled at the winery on Clarendon Hills’ proprietary bottling line for optimal results. Romas Old Vine Grenache is the highest fidelity expression of Blewitt Springs Grenache at Clarendon Hills. Its is the most complex and mineral driven and it has the finest, longest and most profound structure. The density of the rocks and soil in the Romas vineyard defines the cuvee. The heavy presence of ironstone, quartz and shale rocks limit the size and yields of these vines and the resulting wine reflects the mineral elements with haunting fidelity. The expression we receive from the vineyard is truly hedonistic and offers deep flinty and crushed rock mineral complexity for the serious wine collectors and enthusiasts. Typically each vintage yields a vivid kaleidoscope of fresh cut roses, Turkish delight, musk, sherbert, blood orange, blueberry, raspberry and kirsch fruit across an effortless powerful palate aloft with silk and ultra fine talcum like extract. Nuances of crushed rock, flint, graphite, iodine and ferrous like rust take this expression to the next level. Despite the majesty of the tasting note the profile is medium weighted and mirrors an iron fist in the velvet glove analogy. Amazing both right now to drink and also for the next 20 years in the cellar. The 2023 vintage offers a profound perfume that has to be experienced. I recommend opening your Romas Grenache at all ages of life, but especially when its young while the flavours and perfumes are so exotic and vivid.
Specifications
RegionRegion
Blewitt Springs, McLaren Vale is a sprawling hillside region 12 kms North East of McLaren Vale town centre. Famous for its deep sands and many flowing hillsides, Blewitt Springs is home to some of the oldest Old Vine Grenache plantations in the world. The Romas Grenache Vineyard was planted circa 1920. The region enjoys added comparative elevation to its surrounding McLaren Vale districts and its abundantly flowing hillside aspects have a deeper hidden secret to their prominence: a mineral rich subterranean, highly decayed layer of ironstone and quartz that impart a myriad of nuanced mineral notes to the wines produced. The 6 km proximity to the Great Southern Ocean and St Vincents Gulf also imparts a gift of Chardonnay like acidity to the reds which impart an infinite freshness to the wine style. The Romas Old Vine Grenache vineyard is a single vineyard expression from an old gnarly low yielding bush vine patch of Grenache on the rockiest and ironstone richest section of our "Blewitt Springs Vineyard". This section has a due East aspect and receives the cool morning sun and complete shade in the afternoon. It is located at 270 metres above sea level and represents Blewitt Springs’ higher altitude stony geology with less sands in this section and more highly compacted geology of coarse quartz, ironstone, shale fragments.
Conditions
The 2023 vintage was the third La Niña growing cycle in a row of vintages since 2021. The markedly cool and late ripening seasons of La Niña, of the 3 last vintages, 2023 would turn out to the latest overall picked and best overall vintage of the trio. The relentlessly wet winter of 2022 continued in to a wet and warm and unusually humid spring time encouraging optimal canopies and fruit set. However very mild summer ensued and the vineyards did not record a 40 degree Celsius day for the Summer, which was unique. The mild Summer delayed the onset of veraison as a result. Autumn soon arrived and so did perfect sunny 21 degree weather every day coupled with very cool nights. Eventual full maturity came approximately 3-4 weeks later than the already late 2022 vintage. The result: amazingly exquisite fruit with preserved acidity and remarkable floral aromas. Some of the most exceptional fruit that we have picked in recent years. Throughout the entire production process from grapes approaching full ripeness, at the crusher, in the tank, in the press, out of the barrel and in to our glasses the 2023 wines have demonstrated another very special layer. The floral component and perfectly portrayed fruit core gives these wines a an uncanny precociousness to them.
Winemaking
Low yielding, dry grown vines from the Blewitt Springs region in McLaren Vale were hand-picked and followed by a 40% whole berry, 100% destemmeed, wild yeast fermentation. Gently pressed and returned to barrel for 18 monthsc in only well seasoned, high end, French Oak.
Maturation
18 months, within a hierarchy of 3-8 year old tightly grained French Oak. Bottled at the winery with no fining or filtration.
Grape Variety
100% Old Vine Grenache, single vine, old vines
Closure
DIAM
Production
2910 bottles
Winemaker
Roman Bratasiuk
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