2020 ‘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.
For our 2020 wines we wanted to change the design, and enlisted the help of our friend and local SA graphic designer, Sophie Cavies. With her help we redesigned ‘Taking the Mickie’ to truly reflect the story behind the name. Every label has featured some tweaks along the way as we continue to evolve and learn.
The same goes for what’s inside the bottle too! We’ve created a style of Shiraz that Mickie enjoys drinking – fruity, smooth and easy to enjoy.
$35.00
$30 a bottle in any straight or mixed dozen
Wine Details
| Region | Barossa Valley, South Australia |
|---|---|
| Vintage | 2020 |
| Variety | Shiraz |
| Volume | 750ml |
| Alcohol Volume | 14.5% |
| pH | 3.55 |
| TA | 7.47 g/L |
| Residual Sugar | 0.7 g/L (equates to 0.1 g/glass) |
| Vegan Friendly | ✔ |
| Keto Friendly | ✔ |
| No fining agents used (only gravity!) | |
Vintage Notes
Towards the end of winter we combined two of our favourite things – incorporating technology and data into the vineyard by installing two in-ground moisture probes.
Through the use of this data, we were able to irrigate more effectively and despite the third drought year in a row we achieved good quality and yield from our 2020 crop.
Spring and early summer were fairly normal. By January conditions were starting to ease and February was the mildest summer in ~20 years, allowing the fruit time to hang on the vine post-veraison and develop flavour.
One row of vines was handpicked on the 3rd of March, with the remaining rows machine harvested on the 7th of March. Majority destemmed, with a small amount of whole bunch, the separate small bin ferments ticked away until the 18th of March.
After fermentation the fruit was basket pressed straight to oak, finishing primary and secondary fermentation in the barrel.
Following this, the wine was racked off gross lees before returning to barrel and allowing it to mature in seasoned hogsheads, for 19 months.
We’ve created a style of Shiraz that we enjoy drinking, and importantly a style that Mickie enjoys drinking – fruity, smooth and easy to enjoy.
Drink while young to enjoy the vibrancy of Shiraz fruit or cellar longer term for more complexity.
| Region | Barossa Valley, South Australia |
|---|---|
| Vintage | 2020 |
| Variety | Shiraz |
| Volume | 750ml |
| Alcohol Volume | 14.5% |
| pH | 3.55 |
| TA | 7.47 g/L |
| Residual Sugar | 0.7 g/L (equates to 0.1 g/glass) |
| Vegan Friendly | ✔ |
| Keto Friendly | ✔ |
| No fining agents used (only gravity!) | |
We received decent winter rainfall for the first time in a few years, setting the vines up for a good start to the growing season.
Towards the end of winter we combined two of our favourite things – incorporating technology and data into the vineyard by installing two in-ground moisture probes.
Through the use of this data, we were able to irrigate more effectively and despite the third drought year in a row we achieved good quality and yield from our 2020 crop.
Spring and early summer were fairly normal. By January conditions were starting to ease and February was the mildest summer in ~20 years, allowing the fruit time to hang on the vine post-veraison and develop flavour.
One row of vines was handpicked on the 3rd of March, with the remaining rows machine harvested on the 7th of March. Majority destemmed, with a small amount of whole bunch, the separate small bin ferments ticked away until the 18th of March.
After fermentation the fruit was basket pressed straight to oak, finishing primary and secondary fermentation in the barrel.
Following this, the wine was racked off gross lees before returning to barrel and allowing it to mature in seasoned hogsheads, for 19 months.
We’ve created a style of Shiraz that we enjoy drinking, and importantly a style that Mickie enjoys drinking – fruity, smooth and easy to enjoy.
Drink while young to enjoy the vibrancy of Shiraz fruit or cellar longer term for more complexity.
Reviews & Awards
93 points – Ray Jordan, Wine Pilot
As you might imagine it’s slightly more robust than the Genista Grenache and the blend, yet it retains that same silky smooth, finely integrated palate structure that makes these wines so appealing. Dark earthy fruits with a little savoury dried herbs on the nose. The palate then shows a delightful sweet dark chocolate and plummy combination with just a touch of oak. Ideal drinking in the medium term while those vibrant primary fruit characters are so dominant.
92 points – Ken Gargett, Wine Pilot
Another delightful curiously named wine from this emerging Barossa operation. Welcome to winemaking! The colour here is an opaque magenta. The nose exhibits florals, blackcurrants, chocolate, plums and coffee beans. There are hints of oak, but it is well integrated. Tobacco leaf notes emerge on the palate. Good structure, and serious length indeed. Very fine tannins, this will drink well and improve further over the next six to eight years. This is the best TTM to date.
Silver Medal
2022 Barossa Wine Show
