Kershaw Elgin Clonal Selection Syrah 2018

Mid cherry red, the nose exudes raspberry, black plum, green pepper and hints of lavender. A supple entry, structural elegance with freshness and a cooling mid-palate where the tannins appear seamless yet still firm and the acid supportive but not too lively. This is a polished wine already brim-full of fruit, classic black pepper and sweet spices. A real depth of flavour with a dry, smooth extended finish will reward those who cellar this vintage for the next 5-8 years.

The grapes were handpicked under autumnal skies into small lug baskets and then manually sorted on a conveyor before the stems were removed. The destemmed berries fell onto a vibrating table in order to remove jacks and substandard berries before dropping uncrushed into a small 500kg conical hopper and being forklifted into open-topped fermenters. The grapes underwent a 3-day maceration before spontaneous fermentation began. A gentle pigeage program was charted and the grapes remained on skins for 21-29 days. The wine was then racked to barrel under gravity and the remaining pomace basket-pressed. Malolactic then proceeded in barrel followed by a light sulphuring and 17-month maturation. No finings were necessary, and the wine was simply racked and bottled unfiltered.