History

The fruit for Elderton Shiraz is sourced mainly from the Elderton Vineyard situated on the banks of the North Para River, Nuriootpa, Barossa Valley, South Australia. Elderton was transformed from a vineyard supplying quality fruit to other wineries to a winery in its own right in 1982, and have since won much recognition for all of the wines, especially the Shiraz. Barossa Shiraz is now highly collectable worldwide, and the Elderton is always a benchmark for the region.

Winemaking

Following de-stemming and inoculation with a selected yeast strain, fermentation took place in stainless steel potter fermenters and concrete open top fermenters at 28°C for approximately 5-7 days. Maturation using the best French and American oak puncheons for 14 months.

Viticulture

There are 12 blocks of Shiraz on the Elderton Estate, some as old as 100 years, which grow in deep alluvial soils over limestone. Combined with a Mediterranean climate and minimal supplemented irrigation, this creates what one can only describe as ‘the perfect Shiraz vineyard’. Mainly the grapes are machine harvested in the cool of the night, at an optimum maturity of about 14 – 15 Baume. This allows a quick delivery to the winery for crushing, before any spoilage can occur.

Awards

•  James Halliday Wine Companion 2010 Edition - 90 POINTS
•  LiquorLand Top 100 2009 - BRONZE MEDAL
•  London International Wine & Spirit Competition 2009 - SILVER MEDAL
•  Gourmet Traveller WINE Magazine 2009 - BEST BUY WINES
•  Concours Mondial de Bruxelles 2009 - GOLD MEDAL

Reviews

•  Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar Sep/Oct ’08 Issue - Bright ruby. Sexy oak spices and blackberry on the nose, with a deeper boysenberry quality developing with air. Sappy and velvety in texture, with penetrating dark berry, bitter cherry skin and baking spice flavours. Finishes broad, sweet and long, repeating the dark fruit notes and leaving an alluring violet pastille note behind. 91 points
•  91 Points - Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate 2009 - The 2006 Shiraz Nuriootpa was sourced from 60-year-old vines. Deep crimson-coloured, it has an already multifaceted perfume of smoke, black pepper, bacon, and blueberry. This leads to a smooth-textured, ripe Shiraz with layers of savory fruit, soft tannins, and a pure finish. Drink it over the next eight years.
•  Gourmet Wine Traveller Magazine - The best value buy!
•  91 POINTS - Campbell Mattinson & Gary Walsh, The Wine Front - “Easy-drinking appeal, sure, but a damn fine example of it. It tastes of cherry, blackberries, earth and ground coffee, with cedary oak offering firm support. It’s moderately intense with a sweet, malty aftertaste and very good length."
•  Best Buy Wines - $30 AUD and under. Huon Hooke, Gourmet Wine Traveller Magazine - June/July 2009 issue - This is the little brother to Elderton’s flagship Command Shiraz, one of the more attractive blockbuster styles in the Barossa. It’s a smooth, nicely balanced red that’s starting to show some savoury complexities from development, with licorice, chocolate and aniseed to the fore. It’s not too oaky nor alcoholic, but is full of honest Barossa flavour, fruit-sweet on the mid-palate and with a lush, silky texture. Just delicious. Drink it now and for the next 8 to 10 years.
•  92/100 - Ray Jordan - This is an impressive and powerful Shiraz with touches of gamey fruit cake and deep underlying power. Has a succulent fruitiness that you don't normally associated with Elderton. Aim has been to keep the fruit integrity of the wines intact with some largely older American oak in support. Stylish, expressive wine.