When Pete Schell heard rumblings of a small old Grenache block being put up for sale for being "too old and too low yielding", naturally his ears pricked up. A call was promptly placed to the owner, a brief negotiation followed and Pete has now been farm-sharing the block for three years. Pete describes it as a "lovely old block" with an average vine age of 60 years old. These gnarled old vines are dry grown, spur pruned bush vines and yields are, across the board, 'miserable'. But, the resulting wines are strong, characterful and jam packed with flavour and energy. The fruit was hand harvested and wild fermented in stainless steel. 40% was whole bunch and the remaining 60% was uncrushed, destemmed berries. Pump-overs occurred every second day and the wine was matured on light lees in seasoned thick-staved 500L French oak puncheons.
The aromas are dense with ripe fruits, dark spices, earthy undertones and some purple floral lift. The palate has silky fruits, vibrant acidity and lovely light, tight-grained tannins with a savoury and anise-tinged finish.