Winery & Vintage Info
The Shiraz was sourced from the Schrapel family vineyards grown along the eastern ridge of the Barossa Ranges. Established 80 - 100 years ago by Lawrence Schrapel; the vineyard follows the contours of the hillface and is planted in fertile red brown loam topsoil with a deeper red clay calcareous base.
The higher elevation of the vineyard and east west aspect is ideal for cool even ripening and sunlight exposure, naturally intensifying the aromatics and flavour profile of the fruit. Traditional viticulture practices of hand pruning to 70 buds per vine limit the yield from these old vines to 6.25t/Ha, concentrating the flavours into fewer berries.
The winter and spring of 2016 were wet and even December was wetter than average. The growing season for the 2017 vintages was cool (December) or average (January) with brief periods of rain in January to keep the vines refreshed. 2017 was a balanced, cooler vintage in the Barossa with a long ripening period which led to reds developing exceptional colour and tannic framework along with a deep fruit profile and aromatic intensity.
Parcels of fruit were harvested and fermented separately for the Bethany 'First Village' Shiraz 2017, prior to being put to oak hogsheads for maturation. The final blend was composed out of barrel with the wine then given time in stainless steel to come together prior to bottling. Winery Notes
