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| Bleasdale are Australia's second oldest family owned winery, established 1850 by English migrant Frank Potts. Potts built much of Adelaide's early colonial works before settling down to his homestead at Langhorne Creek. Bleasdale» |
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| A vineyard of some historical import, Bernoota is the original block, planted to the Follett family homestead along the banks of River Bremer, two decades before federation. A splendid construct of Langhorne Creek Shiraz Cabernet, selected from old vines around the distinguished Follett family vineyard, perennially released to resounding accolades. Lake Breeze» |
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| The Moppa district was a flourishing settlement of pioneering farmers and gold miners. When the Kalleske vineyard was established in 1853, there were few schools in the region, so local parents established the Moppa Public School to provide their children with a formal education. Kalleske» |
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| A stellar achiever around the national wine show circuit, Wicks have claimed significant trophy triumphs for the excellence of their Pinot Noir. After a long family history of orchard farming and viticulture in the Adelaide Hills, priority was given to the establishment of choice clones Pinot Noir along the scenic slopes at Woodside. Wicks» |
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| So popular are the wines of Pepperjack, that the label hosts its own society of dedicated enthusiasts. This devout cohort of zealots, converges at bespoke venues to discuss matters Pepperjack, they dine on prime beef and imbibe in their cherished libation. Pepperjack» |
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| Meshach William Burge 1843-1942, was Grant's great grandfather, a central figure in establishing the Burge vineyards and estate. He was eleven years of age when his family moved from Wiltshire to the Barossa, where he toiled to develop what has grown into a thriving viticultural, wheat and sheep property near Lyndoch. Grant Burge» |
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| In exceptional years, parcels of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot are separately fermented. The best lots are assembled into a multiple trophy winer named Harry's Monster and treated to an extravagant maturation in the finest oak. Giant Steps» |
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| From parcels of Pinot Noir, planted to the foot of tailings, left behind by waves of prospectors who pursued their fortune amongst the open pits and mines on Adelaide Hills during the gold rush of the 1850s. Crushed and destemmed straight into the press with minimal time on skins to extract the perfect pink, its blushing lipstick hues presage a cornucopia of lifted strawberry and cherry blossom characters, ruby grapefruit and luscious jube over a length of tasty, toothsome tannins, the perfect Rosé for lazy afternoons or late night soirées. Bird In Hand» |
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| Of particular importance to Shadowfax are the very close relationships with a select group of growers who provide harvests of the most intensely flavoured fruit. A prolific trophy winner, Shadowfax are a refreshing new wave, vigorously fruit driven, livelier than her Victorian siblings, characterised by slatey, flavoursome acidity, a touch of lees complexity and judicious dryness. Shadowfax» |
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| The five most most exclusive parcels of old vine Shiraz, a secret component of the Barossa's most memorable vintages, hand picked off the De Fazio and Hillview vineyards at Belvidere and Moppa. Batches are crushed into traditional open top fermenters for a week of pumpovers, gently pressed into an extravagantly high proportion of new French oak hogsheads for two years maturation, followed by the final assemblage, unfiltered and unfined. Pirathon» |
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| Elderton Cabernet was winner of the prestigious Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy in 1993, the following years it claimed back to back Gold and Trophy at the Barossa Wine Show. The 1994 vintage gave Elderton its first international Gold medal in London, an unbroken tradition of remarkable vintages have embossed the Elderton Estate name as a national champion, being chosen by Qantas for service in first class. Elderton» |
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| Named for the Chapel district of Lenton in Nottingham, Brae is Scottish for a small hill, which is what the Lenton Brae vineyard is situated on. Fortuitously placed within the very epicenter for superior Margaret River Cabernet, the site was planted after advisement from the proprietors of nearby Moss Wood, with which it shares a similar terroir and microclime. Lenton Brae» |
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About Merricks Estate - the Winery
Merricks Estate
One of Mornington Peninsula's founding estates, Merrcks Estate endure as a custodian of some wonderful old vines and the traditions of a great winemaking region
Merricks Estate label is an 1821 lithograph by Louis de Sainson entitled Habitation de Pecheurs de Phoques au Port Western. The earliest printed image of Victoria, dated two years before the founding of Melbourne. It depicts a sealers camp between Merricks and Point Leo beach. The vineyard covers more than 3 ha and production varies between 1500 and 3000 cases, according to the season. Seasons can vary dramatically. While the location is magnificent, it comes with often difficult weather, especially in late spring and early summer when the vines are flowering and the new leaves offer little protection from gale-force winds and blinding rain. In such conditions, viticulture is crucial.
Merricks Estate uses the Scott Henry trellising system, which maximizes the light and sum available to the fruit and opens out the canopy of leaves. The leaves are the vine's solar collecters and the way they are now trellised provides greater opportunity for photosynthesis for fruit ripeness and flavour during the long ripening season. In the extended ripening before picking in April and May, flavours are concentrated and the varietal characteristics of grapes are intensified. There is tremendous diversity within each block of varietal grapes at Merricks Estate. This can be attributed to the magnificence of Mornington's mesoclimes, the highly favourable terroirs and a manifest of opportune clones.
Merricks Estate Shiraz was recognized as an exceptional wine from its earliest release. The 1984 Shiraz was named by England's prestigious Decanter magazine as one of the best wines of 1985, and was described as a wondrously spicy/peppery wine which is, at the same time hauntingly delicate
At Merricks Estate the most elusive grape, Pinot Noir, has produced superb burgundian style wines but tantalizingly low yields. It was therefore gratifying when the 1997 Pinot Noir, the first vintage to meet Royal Melbourne Show volume requirements, was awarded the trophy for Best Pinot Noir.
In a move towards crafting vintages which are more articulate of Mornington, some of the older Cabernet vines were replaced by Pinot Noir. Clones include the M4V2 (Pommard) and the Abel. The old French Pommard clone celebrated for its darker fruit, structure, density, chewy texture and sweeter nose. The Abel also originated from France adds a more savoury characteristic to the wine. Additional plantings of the auspicious MV6 have also served well. The vineyad team are always very excited about these additional clones at harvest time as they look forward to better vintages offering wines of greater complexity. The small amount of older Merlot vines have also been removed and replaced with a half acre of Chardonnay.
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