Hunter Valley Merlot (Cellar Door only) 2007

Region
Hunter Valley

Appearance
Deep vibrant crimson with purple hues

Bouquet
Lifted blackberry, chocolate, earth & spice with hints of smoky leather

Palate
Supple, balanced, medium-bodied palate, sweet black fruit flavours unfold with liquorice and earthy characters. Soft varietal tannins entwine with balanced acidity, medium alcohol & integrated oak giving lush texture & a long dry finish.

Vintage Conditions
The 2007 vintage treated us to fine and mild weather with dry conditions during the late maturation period providing excellent ripening conditions. This allowed fruit of the highest quality to be hand-harvested at optimum maturity.

Winemaking
Fruit was hand-picked in the cool of the morning and immediately transferred to the winery. All fruit was hand-sorted to eliminate any substandard fruit. Half of the fruit was destemmed and gently crushed direct to fermenter. The balance was destemmed only to ensure preservation of inherent fruit aroma & vineyard expression. Allowed for a slow, controlled initiation of fermentation by indigenous yeasts to enhance complexity & colour extraction. After inclusion of a tiny percentage of whole bunches to provide an extra dimension to tannins, the fruit was tipped to open fermenters to avoid pumping. Post-cool maceration, natural fermentation was initiated by indigenous yeasts. The wine was plunged minimally throughout this period in order to avoid over-extraction of tannin. Fermentation temperatures peaked in the low 30’s, negating any requirement for external chilling.

Wine Analysis
Alc/Vol : 13.5 %   pH : 3.46   TA : 5.8 g/L

Cellaring
Will continue to develop over the next 6-10 years with careful cellaring.

Suggested Cuisine
Baked French veal chops with toasted bread crumbs & parmesan cheese.

General Characteristics
Dry    Medium bodied