2018 ‘Taking the Mickie’ Shiraz
Growing up in suburban Melbourne, viticulture and winemaking were completely foreign to me. Discovering a taste for Shiraz in my early twenties, my interest in the field continued to grow until one day I bought a vineyard and we moved to the Barossa Valley. The vine change would not have happened without the support of our friends and family, particularly my parents Kristine and Mickie.
I’m sure my Dad thought we were “taking the mickie” when we first suggested hand pruning our four acres of Shiraz. Every winter he leaves the comfort of retirement, rolls up his sleeves and gets the job done.
Please enjoy this wine with your family and friends.
$35.00
$30 a bottle in any straight or mixed dozen
Wine Details
| Region | Barossa Valley, South Australia |
|---|---|
| Vintage | 2018 |
| Variety | Shiraz |
| Volume | 750ml |
| Alcohol Volume | 14.5% |
| pH | 3.36 |
| TA | 6.81 g/L |
| Residual Sugar | 0.3 g/L (equates to 0.04 g/glass) |
| Vegan Friendly | ✔ |
| Keto Friendly | ✔ |
| No fining agents used (only gravity!) | |
Vintage Notes
With veraison occurring just after the stroke of New Years Day, the grapes were ready to be picked on Valentine’s Day night.
Destemming on the 15th of February 2018, the fruit was fermented in two small open top fermenters. A small amount of the fruit was hand picked, allowing us to create a layer of whole bunch whole berries on the bottom of each fermenter, creating a small layer of carbonic maceration.
After fermentation the two parcels were basket pressed straight to oak, finishing primary and secondary fermentation in the barrel.
Following this, we racked off gross lees, before returning the wine to barrel and allowing it to mature in a mix of French and American hogsheads for 18 months.
Fruit driven and lively now, the 2018 Taking the Mickie Shiraz will reward cellaring for many years to come.
| Region | Barossa Valley, South Australia |
|---|---|
| Vintage | 2018 |
| Variety | Shiraz |
| Volume | 750ml |
| Alcohol Volume | 14.5% |
| pH | 3.36 |
| TA | 6.81 g/L |
| Residual Sugar | 0.3 g/L (equates to 0.04 g/glass) |
| Vegan Friendly | ✔ |
| Keto Friendly | ✔ |
| No fining agents used (only gravity!) | |
2018 was a year of the new normal. Dry conditions leading in to a warm spring and hot summer, all the major annual lifecycle milestones were met one or two weeks earlier than the long term average. Following a plentiful year and with below average rainfall, the 2018 harvest generated below average yields.
With veraison occurring just after the stroke of New Years Day, the grapes were ready to be picked on Valentine’s Day night.
Destemming on the 15th of February 2018, the fruit was fermented in two small open top fermenters. A small amount of the fruit was hand picked, allowing us to create a layer of whole bunch whole berries on the bottom of each fermenter, creating a small layer of carbonic maceration.
After fermentation the two parcels were basket pressed straight to oak, finishing primary and secondary fermentation in the barrel.
Following this, we racked off gross lees, before returning the wine to barrel and allowing it to mature in a mix of French and American hogsheads for 18 months.
Fruit driven and lively now, the 2018 Taking the Mickie Shiraz will reward cellaring for many years to come.
Reviews & Awards
92 points – Jeni Port, Wine Pilot
I have yet to meet a 2018 shiraz from the Barossa Valley that wasn’t scrumptious and delightful as a youngster, and with great potential for ageing. Taking The Mickie 2018 is no exception. Deep, dark and dense, every component is well-measured. This is one of those wines where expensive oak greets you and it’s so good, so enticing, it just jells with the fruit. Ripe oak tannins aid the wine’s structure and are nicely are under control allowing plump, sweet black fruits, spice and smart vanilla-toasty oak their moment. The fruit is the star, love the blackcurrant pastille notes that inject a touch of sweet juiciness among the dark, light savouriness of the wine. Shows Barossa shiraz as ripe (14.5% alcohol), warm and rounded. It’s all in pursuit of a wine that is delicious and good to go now, but with the ability to age.
91 points – Ken Gargett, Wine Pilot
Maroon in colour, this offers a nose chockful of dark fruits and spices with hints of dry herbs, pepper, blackfruits, chocolate and ripe plums. Soft and juicy, it is a wine of mid-weight, avoiding the tendency for huge wines that the region can sometimes supply. Fresh, this is a wine with a future, and it certainly should drink beautifully over the next five to six years. Lovely wine.
