Foundstone Shiraz

A fresh and juicy Shiraz with cranberry fruit, eucalyptus and black olive flavours. Benchmark Australian Shiraz.

Producer Note

Established by Bob and Cherie Berton in May 1996, Berton Vineyard is one of Hallgarten's most important partners. The estate covers 30 hectares of land located on gently rolling hills at 450 metres above sea level, in a subregion of Eden Valley in South Australia. The superb Reserve Shiraz and Reserve Chardonnay wines are still sourced from this plot. In 2007, Bob purchased the Yenda winery in the heart of the Riverina. This state-of- the-art facility has the capacity to process 20,000 tonnes and enables Berton Vineyard to produce value for money wines which sit alongside their premium single vineyard offerings.

Vintage 

Warm, dry conditions and no rain during the harvest season resulted in a fantastic vintage, with little disease incidence or pressure to harvest. As a result, the colour is deep and flavours are ripe and intense. Most of the Shiraz for this dry red blend was harvested during March, when the fruit reached a Baumé of approximately 14.

Vineyard

The vine age is varied, but all vines have been spur pruned and are generally trained on a single wire cordon trellising system. The vines are planted at approximately 1.8 metres apart with 3.6 metres between the rows, to allow machinery access. The soil styles in the vineyards are predominantly loam to clay loam in texture, with moderate to high fertility.

Winemaking

All grapes were machine harvested and tested for ripeness which was aimed at 1414.5 Baumé. The harvest took place in the morning and throughout the day. The parcels were fermented separately in stainless steel potters for four to six days at controlled temperatures of between 26 to 30°C, with regular pump overs onto premium French toasted and untoasted oak chips. The wine was then pressed off its skins at 1° Baumé and transferred to stainless steel tanks where it underwent oak treatment with oak staves. The wine went through malolactic fermentation and was then clarified. The best parcels were selected and blended.

Tasting Note

An expressive Shiraz offering an abundance of ripe blackberry, black cherry and plum fruit along with toasty sweet oak notes. Generous and concentrated, with notes of coffee, vanilla and caramel complement the fruit flavours and create a long, rich satisfying finish.

Serving Suggestions

Enjoy with steak or hearty winter stews.

Grape

Shiraz 91%, Durif 9%