Grove Estate The Cellar Block Shiraz Viognier 2014
Style: Red Wine
Closure: Screwcap
Grove Estate The Cellar Block Shiraz Viognier 2014
Camberwell
Burke Road
Camberwell VIC 3124
Australia
Critic Score: 95
Alcohol: 13.5%
Size: 750 ml
Drink by: 2030
Trophy for Wine of The Year – 2015 Hilltops Wine of the Year Awards
Grove Estate Wines is located just four kilometres out of Young, in the heart of the beautiful Hilltops region of New South Wales. The high altitude vineyard, established in 1989 by Brian and Suellen Mullany, is planted to over 50 hectares of vines. Grove Estate has quietly built an international following for its range of exceptional cool-climate wines made exclusively from estate-grown fruit. Its signature range includes several Italian varieties - Nebbiolo, Sangiovese, and Barbera - as well as the current flagship, The Cellar Block Shiraz Viognier. The wines, made by Tim Kirk of Clonakilla and Bryan Martin of Ravensworth, have received critical acclaim at many wine shows in Australia and overseas.
"A vibrantly incisive medium-bodied wine with spice, licorice, black cherry and blackberry all in the action; it accelerates on the journey through the mouth, and leaves the footprint of its flavours long after it is ingested, strongly savoury notes an unqualified success - and pleasure." James Halliday
"Aromatic and evocative, this Shiraz Viognier opens with lifted notes of red liquorice, cloves, and dark plum, immediately suggesting depth and elegance. The nose is intensely perfumed, with a musky, fruit-driven character that speaks to its cool-climate origins. On the palate, a dark, brooding core unfurls with generous, mouth-filling layers of spiced black fruit, all seamlessly integrated with savoury oak. A firm, chalky tannin structure provides definition and length, lending the wine a poised, architectural finish. Stylistically, it leans more toward Cornas than Côte-Rôtie - structured, powerful, yet sophisticated." Winery Notes
Expert reviews
"A vibrantly incisive medium-bodied wine with spice, licorice, black cherry and blackberry all in the action; it accelerates on the journey through the mouth, and leaves the footprint of its flavours long after it is ingested, strongly savoury notes an unqualified success - and pleasure. Drink by 2029." James Halliday, Halliday Wine Companion - 95 points and Special Value Wine ★
"This is a delightfully perfumed wine showing an aromatic combination of red fruits, spices and black pepper. The palate is long and opulent, balanced with fine tannins. A gorgeous wine." 2015 Hilltops Wine of the Year Awards - Trophy for Wine of The Year
"A classic modern Rhôney red whose heady, cedary bouquet of briary dark plums, cherries, blackberries and redcurrants reveals nuances of dried herbs, musky spices and a whiff of tomato stalk. Medium to full-bodied, it's richly flavoured with unctuous, brightly lit dark fruit backed by savoury oak and framed by a firmish chalky spine. It finishes with a lingering core of flavour, fresh acids and finely balanced reductive complexity. Drink: 2022-2026+." Jeremy Oliver - 94 points
Awards
Gold Medal - 2015 Australian Small Winemakers Show
Special Value Wine – Halliday Wine Companion ★
About the winery
Grove Estate Wines is located just four kilometres out of Young, in the heart of the beautiful Hilltops region of New South Wales. The vineyard was established in 1989 by Brian and Suellen Mullany, on the site where Croatian settlers first planted vines in 1866, using vine cuttings they brought with them from Dalmatia.
The vineyard’s red volcanic loam over decomposed granite, combined with its elevated position at 550 metres above sea level, creates ideal conditions for growing premium cool-climate grapes. Cool nights encourage slow ripening and the development of refined aromatics and elegant structure in the fruit.
Since 1989, over 50 hectares of vines have been planted on the property, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Merlot, Zinfandel, Barbera, Sangiovese, Petit Verdot, Chardonnay, Semillon and Nebbiolo. One of the original pickers’ huts was refurbished as the cellar door in 1999.
In 1997, Grove Estate decided to keep a small parcel of fruit and produce a wine under its own label, the 1997 Cabernet Sauvignon. Since then, Grove Estate has quietly built an international following for its range of exceptional cool-climate wines made exclusively from estate-grown fruit. Its signature range, which speaks clearly of origin, includes several Italian varieties - Nebbiolo, Sangiovese, and Barbera - as well as the current flagship, The Cellar Block Shiraz Viognier.
Tim Kirk of Clonakilla and Bryan Martin of Ravensworth make the wines and, together with viticulturist Brian Mullany, they have produced a run of notable wines that have received critical acclaim at wine shows in Australia and overseas.
New South Wales
New South Wales is home to more than 500 wineries across 16 wine regions that produce a range of extremely diverse wines. The regions are Canberra District, Cowra, Gundagai, Hastings River, Hilltops, Hunter Valley, Mudgee, Murray Darling, New England, Orange, Perricoota, Riverina, Southern Highlands, Shoalhaven Coast, Swan Hill and Tumbarumba.
Hunter Valley is New South Wales' best known wine region and has long stolen much of the spotlight . It is also Australia’s oldest continuous wine region - the first vineyard at Wyndham Estate was established in 1828 using cuttings supplied by viticulturist James Busby, widely considered the father of Australian wine. Semillon is perhaps the most iconic wine of the Hunter Valley and is among the greatest and most distinctive wines of Australia - if not the world.
New South Wales' wine regions have a wide range of microclimates. The Great Dividing Range has a substantial influence on the climate of many of the viticultural areas. The regions of higher elevation, such as Canberra District, Canberra District, Orange and Tumbarumba have cooler climates with more continental influences. These regions are responsible for some of the State's most enticing chardonnay, shiraz, cabernet sauvignon, riesling and sauvignon blanc. They, together with the Hunter Valley, which by contrast, is very warm, with high humidity and a large amount of rainfall during the growing and harvest season, produce the bulk of the high quality wine in New South Wales.