2022 First Duke Reserve Shiraz

This limited release wine is a fitting tribute to our forefather, James Graham, who became the First Duke Of Montrose in 1707.The 2022 vintage was a challenging season with spring rains affecting flowering and yield, with a later harvest than usual. This meant a lower fruit yield but higher quality fruit with strong perfume and flavour.Isolated from a single region on our Kangaroo Ground vineyard, this wine comprises five different Shiraz ferments fulfilled for the different clones and blocks. The fruit for this wine was hand-picked and hand-sorted, with a mix of whole bunchand whole berry ferments in open pots and blended with 3-5% Viognier which adds apricot flavours and broad mouth feel. After spending 14-21 days on skins, the wine was pressed into and matured in carefully selected French oak barrels for 9 months, bottled in November 2022, and further bottled aged for two years prior to release.The result is a a beautifully balanced and complex Shiraz with a deep plum colour, exhibiting lifted aromas of cherry and violet arouse the senses. The palate is bursting with rich blood plum, black cherry and clove flavours with an elegant and lingering finish.