The
New Barossa
Part 9:
Spinifex
We’ve
met Pete Schell before in this series: he’s the winemaker at
Turkey Flat. Pete’s own project is called Spinifex, and under this
label he’s making stunning wines that are among the best I tried
on my visit.
When I met up with Pete it would be fair to say I
wasn’t in the best of shape. Now I don’t have the stamina of a
Barossa winemaker, and so I should have shown more caution on Friday
night when I was invited to a magnum dinner at Vintners in Angaston.
Many of the young-ish Barossa crowd were gathered, and each of them
had brought at least a magnum. My notes trailed off about two-thirds
away through the proceedings, and then I went back with a few others
to Travis O’Callaghan’s place where he began mixing cocktails
that, if I remember correctly, consisted of Rockford Rosé and Gin.
So, when Pete swings by to pick me up at 9 am on
Saturday morning, I haven’t yet made it back. He’s got a
fresh-out baby at home, so he sensibly didn’t come out to dinner
on Friday. But graciously he agrees to keep the appointment when I
finally get through to him, and we get stuck into some serious
barrel tasting.
Even in my fragile state, I was thrilled by the wines
we tasted. Pete is quite a pragmatic winemaker: while he makes wines
in a restrained, almost European mould (although you’d probably
still pick them as new world), he’s not afraid of using technology
where it can assist him in his goal. These are wines destined
to be new Australian classics.
But while my mind is willing, my physiology is weak. By
the end of the sampling, I’m feeling very green indeed. I vow
never to drink again, ever. Well, at least to mid-afternoon, when
it’s time for the first round of Cooper’s Pale.
Here’s some notes from my barrel tasting.
Spinifex 2003 Grenache, dry grown 50 year old vineyard
at Greenock (North west of the Barossa). Lovely bright nose of sweet
fruit with a spicy edge. Lovely purity of fruit on the palate with
some spiciness and a chalky minerally edge. A blending component.
Spinifex 2003 Shiraz. Very deep coloured with lots of
fruit sweetness on the nose. Intense, dark aromatic fruit.
Structured palate with great intensity of dark fruits and spice.
Serious.
Spinifex 2003 Shiraz, from 50 year old vineyards on
limestone, macerated for 2.5 weeks. Slightly shy nose. Dark black
fruit character. Hugely structured spicy palate. Taut and tannic
with a savoury, dry finish.
Spinifex 2003 Shiraz from 120 year old vineyard,
southern end of the valley. Dark, almost black. Sensational nose of
aromatic dark fruits and complex spices. Palate shows some sweet
spice character. It’s massively complex and full with lots of
spice and dark fruits. Remarkable.
Spinifex
2003 Shiraz, same wine as above but in new oak. Dark, sweet, intense
nose. Lots of power on the palate with tannins and oak influence.
Spinifex 2003 Shiraz Grenache. Quite open nose with
lovely sweet fruit and a spicy edge. Great structure on the palate.
Expressive.
Spinifex 2003 Mourvèdre from north end of the valley,
sand over clay. Really interesting nose is spicy with a distinctive
herby character. Savoury, spicy, structured palate. Fascinating
stuff.
Spinifex 2003 Mourvèdre. Very low yields of half a ton
an acre. Smooth, sweet dark fruits and spice on nose. The palate is
concentrated and intense with amazing spicy, savoury texture. Great
blending component.
Spinifex 2004 Grenache Mourvèdre. Very sweet, almost
jammy ripe nose with raspberry jam notes. Very ripe and pretty on
the palate.
Spinifex 2004 100-year-old Pedro Ximenez vines grafted
to Shiraz. Some spicy reduction character on the nose, which shows
intense dark fruits. The palate has lovely intensity and structure.
Spinifex 2004 Shiraz, 50-year-old vines with Viognier
in a natural ferment. Dark and intense. Very sweet rich fruit with
spicy complexity and great concentration.
The same vineyard picked at the same time fermented
separately: structured, spicy nose is quite intense and rich with
lovely pure fruit on the palate and some spicy oak notes (seeing as
this is 10 year old oak, it’s likely the spice has come from the
grapes).
Spinifex 2004 Shiraz/Viognier, Eden Valley. Amazingly
aromatic and rich with liqueur-like fruit. Very spicy palate with
lots of fruit: quite full. Harvested at 16.5 Baume, pH 4.2, now
it’s pH 3.5.
Spinifex 2004 Mourvèdre, 40 year old. Very vivid and
spicy with great concentration. Quite serious but with forward
fruit, too.
Spinifex 2004 Kalimna Mourvèdre, 80 year old dry grown
vineyard. Amazing sweet, intense nose. Very expressive. Cherries,
raspberries, some minerals. Lovely structure and acidity on the
palate.
Spinifex 2004 Mourvèdre, 100 year old vines. Spicy,
almost gingery nose. Very rich and ripe on palate but with lots of
structure. Originally over 16% alcohol, but about 20% went through
reverse osmosis and now it’s about 14.2% alcohol.
After
tasting, it was back to Pete's to meet the family and eat some
sausage and livers, where I began to feel vaguely human again. Jason
Schwarz joined us; he was my next appointment.
Part 14: Teusner
Part
15: Troy Kalleske
Part
16: Clancy Fuller
Part
17: Domenic Torzi, revisited
Part
18: Rusden
Part
19: Kym Teusner, revisited
Part
20: Veritas, revisited
Part
21: Greg Hobbs, revisited
Part
22: Massena vertical
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