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Vineyard Chalk Hill Viticulture Lanark Vineyard
Viticulturalist: Jonahon James Harvey
Working closely with our friends at Chalk Hill Viticulture, we planted Arinto at The Lanark Vineyard at the top of Chapel Hill Road in Blewitt Springs in September 2018. The site was deliberately selected for several reasons. The elevation was important because McLaren Vale can get quite hot during our long summers. Elevated vineyards cool quicker at night time thanks to prevailing sea-breezes from the Gulf of Saint Vincent.
Cooler night time temperatures help the vines to recover from hot daytime conditions and ultimately retain fruit flavour and high natural acidity. The aspect is south facing to provide excellent airflow and assist with protecting the vines naturally from fungal disease.
Terroir varies considerably from the top of the hill to the bottom. Vines at the top have more exposure, smaller canopies and ultimately riper flavours with less acid. The vines at the bottom are more vigorous, more acid and crop higher. For us, the combination of the two adds more complexity to the final wine. Despite the vine age, the entire block has matured beautifully in a relative short time.
Ultimately, we are delighted with both the intensity of flavour, vibrant acidity and complete balance of this wine. Compared to the Shiraz planted adjacent to the Arinto we are using a fraction of the amount of water to get it to grow.
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Fruit was picked in the cool of night and pressed immediately off skins. Free run is tank fermented and the pressings is fermented in old French oak puncheons. We do no skin contact with the Arinto. The aim is to create a light fresh fruit driven style with a juicy mouthfeel. Primary fermentation is undertaken using indigenous yeasts with no MLF. It’s all about the fresh nashi pear, white peach and crisp minerality being the star of the show.