Bannockburn de La Roche Shiraz 2018

Bannockburn Vineyards' commitment to quality drives everything they do, from the vineyard to the bottle. All Bannockburn wines are made from fruit grown on their long-established estate in the Geelong wine region. The meticulously tended vineyards and the hands-off approach by winemaker Matt Holmes result in wines that are exciting, complex and uniquely Bannockburn.

Planted in 2007, this tiny close-planted vineyard is littered with volcanic rocks (hence the name) and lies on the plateau above the De La Terre slope—essentially making it a westerly extension of the Serré vineyard. It was originally planted with various clonal cuttings from Best’s and Tahbilk on a mix of rootstock and own roots. As mentioned, Holmes only uses the Best’s clone in this bottling today and the rest of the site has been grafted over to Chardonnay. The 2018 was wild-fermented with 10% whole bunches and some carbonic maceration influence, followed by maturation in French oak hogsheads for 15 months (only five to 10% new this year).

This is a medium-weight shiraz that’s big on personality. It’s bunchy, nutty and a little truffle-infused but the core of silken fruit, black cherries into sweet plum, has a plushness to it, and a seduction. Thus is a shiraz with garden herb, woodsmoke and graphite characters woven through, and more, and should rightly be filed under savoury, and yet at heart it’s fruity and generous. It unfurls as the evening progresses but really, even at hello, it has you sitting up straighter. - Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front, 95 Points

The Finer Details
Style - Red Wine
Varietal - Shiraz
Country - Australia
Region - Geelong, Victoria
Vintage - 2018
Bottle Size - 750ml
ABV - 13.5%
Closure - Screw Cap