Winery & Vintage Info
In 1853 our Kalleske farm and vineyard was established at Moppa, a small sub-district of Greenock in the Barossa’s North-West. The Moppa district was a flourishing settlement of pioneering farming families and gold miners. There were few schools in the region, so local parents established the Moppa Public School in 1873 to give their children a formal education. Located on our Kalleske property, generations of the Kalleske family attended this school until its closure in 1935. Sourced entirely from our Kalleske Moppa vineyard, a trace of Petit Verdot and Viognier has been added to this Shiraz giving it a contemporary edge. This is a genuine hand made wine that’s been grown, vintaged and matured on our Kalleske estate at Greenock in the North-Western Barossa.
Vintage 2017 was stunning. The vines got off to a fantastic start with a wetter than average Winter and mild Spring. Summer brought typically average warm conditions with some excellent rainfall, twice the average. This kept the vines in superb condition for steady ripening into Autumn which remained dry with warm sunny days and cool nights. Yields from 2017 are good and quality is exceptional.
Moppa is predominantly Shiraz with a trace of Petit Verdot (11%) and Viognier (3%) blended in for added complexity. Grapes are from ten different blocks on the Kalleske’s organic farm, with the oldest of these blocks planted in 1961. The vines are low-yielding and are grown in shallow, sandy loam soil over superb deep red clay, providing ideal conditions for these varieties.
The Shiraz was harvested in numerous batches from March 22nd to April 18th. One lot of Shiraz was co-fermented on the skins of Viognier which had been harvested on March 15th. The Petit Verdot is a late ripener and was harvested on April 26th. All batches were wild fermented in open top fermenters with hand pumpovers twice a day during fermentation. After 7 to 14 days on skins the fermented grapes were traditionally pressed. The wine was aged in hogshead barrels for thirteen months. Approximately 25% new French, American and Hungarian oak was used with the balance seasoned barrels. On completion of maturation, a portion of Petit Verdot and Shiraz/Viognier was blended for added complexity. The wine was bottled unfined and unfiltered.
This wine is 100% Organic / Biodynamic as certified by Australian Certified Organic. Winery Notes
