LVDO Mt Torrens Syrah 2024

Ingredients: Grapes, 30 ppm sulphites

Vegan, unfined and unfiltered.

12.5% ABV
750 mL

Grape: Syrah

Vintage: 2024

Vineyard: Burnton Ridge Vineyard, Mt Torrens, Adelaide Hills

Planted: 1998

Elevation: 470 m

Production: 1080 bottles

Inspired by Australia's Red Burgundy wines in the 1950s and 1960s, which were based on the "Hermitage" grape with the addition of Grenache, or Pinot Noir, or Dolcetto, etc. and smelled like and drank like a Pinot Noir-based red Burgundy. I wondered what a modern Red Burgundy would look like. Conveniently, in 2022 I started to work with the Burnton Ridge Vineyard (0.6 ha) at 470 m elevation, planted to mainly Syrah, with single rows of Sangiovese, Merlot, Nero d'Avola and a few vines of Viognier. It is on a sand-based soil with abundant sandstone, quartzite and granite.

Wine making: The grapes were harvested in three passes, four weeks apart, wild-fermented (partially co-fermented) with a broad range of techniques: whole cluster, destemmed, intracellular fermentation and extended maceration (100 days). Then, it was aged in ancient oak barrels for 10 months and bottled with 30 ppm SO2. The result is a fragrant and elegant wine with serious structure underneath and persistent flavours.

Blend composition: 93% Syrah, 2% Nero d’Avola, 2% Sangiovese, 2% Viognier, 1% Merlot

95 pts, Ryan Montgomery, jamessuckling.com

“This is really delicious, with a European feel. Aromas of spices, charcuterie, dried herbs, olive tapenade, granitic earth, wild blackberries and licorice. The palate is light- to medium-bodied with fine tannins and bright acidity. The texture is excellent, with refined tannins and only 12.5% alcohol. Made from 93% syrah with touches of sangiovese, nero d’avola and viognier. Drink or hold.”