Koltz, winner of the Small Vignerons Award, is a small fifty tonne winery located within the elite Blewitt Springs appellation of McLaren Vale. All wines are estate grown and crafted, the operation is very much hands on. Shiraz was the estate's first effort, produced in small volumes, from fruit grown to a small but very special block of vine. Characterized by blueberry and earth characters, elegant with velvety tannins and superb length. Extended maceration contributes to the complexity, the aim being to construct a Shiraz which reflects the excellence of site.

$2799each $335DOZEN EACH DOZEN Koltz is a very small producer of hand crafted wines, made to traditional methods, fermented in open vats, basket pressed and matured under finely grained oaks. Koltz try to make wines that are individual and reflect the estate's philosophy that wines should be a pleasure to drink at every stage of their evolution. Vintage at Blewitt Springs is generally two to four weeks later than most of McLaren Vale. The sandy soils over ironstone make distinctive wines. Shiraz is open fermented and basket pressed, portions are treated to an extended maceration for up to fifty days, depending on season and ripeness. The finished wine is matured in a selection of seasoned and new French oak barrels for up to twenty months.

Deep vibrant dark purple colour. Lovely berry fruit pastille characters with a touch of spice supported by subtle cedary oak. A middle weight wine with a soft generous mid palate finishing over nice firm tannins. Mouthfilling, a lift of spicey fruit carries through from the nose. Excellent value for the Koltz entry point wine, there's plenty to appreciate in this pure and ripe, well crafted, concentrated Shiraz.

Leconfield occupies some of the Coonawarra's richest Terra rosa over limestone soils, a composition that's idyllic for vintages of superior new world Shiraz. The aim is to craft a wine endowed with great palate depth and weight of fruit whilst retaining elegance, where oak complexes and enhances the fruit but is not allowed to dominate. Several components of Leconfield complete their fermentations in barrel while the balance is treated to extra time on skins before pressing and filling into the highest quality French oak for an extravagant, extended maturation.

$2499each $299DOZEN EACH DOZEN The signature style of Leconfield, from mature adult vines grown to rich Terra rossa soils, the bunches are treated to a detailed hand clean following the initial pruning and harvest. Much of the wine completes fermentation in French oak, assembled with a component that's been treated to extended contact on grape skins for several weeks. Leconfield is matured nineteen months in a selection of seasoned and new French oak hogsheads with several workings to soften the tannins and fill out the flavour, followed by a light egg fining and gentle filtration.

Rich red colour. Ripe plum and cassis nose, red cedar, nutmeg and cinnamon. Palate displays an excellent depth of rich dark peppery plum fruit flavours supported by ripe, long tannins, full of flavour while retaining elegance and finesse. Leconfield will develop cedary characters as the lovely primary fruit evolves. A wine to be savoured in a large glass to the accompaniment of the best beef and gourmandise game.

Just between the southern estate boundary of Ellen Street and the Maxwell wineworks, a small vineyard of craggy, gnarled Shiraz vines planted 1953 yields a tiny harvest of the most concentrated Shiraz. Matured twenty months in a high proportion of new French and American oak hogsheads, Ellen Street's redolent nose of ripe blood plum, aniseed and vanilla presages a refined palate brimming with the trade spice complexities of old vine McLaren Vale, cinnamon and chocolates, blueberries and clove, all resolving on an expansive, elegant finish.

$4099each $491DOZEN EACH DOZEN

Single block Shiraz from a parcel of Shiraz clone 1654, planted near the intersection of Olivers and Chalk Hill Roads at the very north of Maxwell vineyards. Deeply influenced by the unique alluvial grey brown loam soils over Tortachilla limestone, Eocene is treated to the luxury of two years age in a selection of the finest French oak hogsheads. Vibrant and animate, highly articulate of its single site provenance, generous with intense weight of fruit, the syrup blackberry, raspberry and plum flavours cascade over the length of opaque, bittersweet chocolate tannins.

$5299each $635DOZEN EACH DOZEN

Experience is a wonderful thing. After many generations of trial and error, the French have learned to make a delicious drink from a harvest of pure Grenache. Maxwell employ the same approach to create a juicy, rich red wine with a gossamer palate. Maxwell's old Grenache vines have grown for nine decades on a classic contoured hill with south facing aspect. They were bush vines with their thick trunks and sprawling arms until a few years ago when they were lifted up and put on a trellis wire to keep them ripening evenly as they grow older.

$2799each $335DOZEN EACH DOZEN Named for the intersection of Olivers and Chalk Hill Road, Brewery Hill Road and Old Ellen Street upon which the Maxwell wineworks are situated. The property sprawls across the southern slope and crest of Lumb's Hill, amongst gently rolling hills just one mile north of McLaren Vale's Main Street. Planted to solid limestone soils, in close proximity to the moderating effects of Gulf of St Vincent, conditions in the vineyards are ideal for producing small quantities of intensely flavoured grapes. The sultry maritime climes achieve remarkable balance of sugar and acids, flavour and tannin. Following the vinification, Four Roads Grenache is matured for a year in a selection of seasoned French oak barrels.

Vibrant red cherry colour with bright pink hues. Aromas of maraschino cherry with white pepper spice and traces of musk. Medium bodied palate showing bright mixed red berry fruits balanced perfectly by savoury spice and hints of lavender on the back palate. Very much in the honest, hearty McLaren Vale style, a highly versatile wine to accompany many different cuisines and occasions, a great match with steak and onions.

From nineteen invaluable rows of Reynella clone Cabernet Sauvignon, the descendants of John Reynell's original import of vine into McLaren Vale circa 1838. Planted to the crest of a cave, excavated 1916 to cultivate mushrooms in the dense limestone bluffs overlooking Maxwell vineyards. Aged twenty months in a high proportion of new French oak hogsheads, the classic Cabernet characters of currant, cherries and cassis, a generously proportioned palate underpinned by soft, chocolatey McLaren Vale tannins and seamlessly integrated cedar vanilla oak.

$4199each $503DOZEN EACH DOZEN

$2199each $263DOZEN EACH DOZEN

In 1871 Scottish scientist James Clerk Maxwell proposed a thought experiment which involved a hypothetical creature known to physicists as Maxwell's little demon, it has stirred debate in the science community ever since. Maxwell of Mclaren Vale have built a solid reputation for hand made, rich and robust red wines that combine exquisite fruit with solid structure and finesse. Little Demon is a triple entente of Shiraz Grenache and Mourverdre, rich, round and effusive, absolutely exquisite, even in its youth.

$2199each $263DOZEN EACH DOZEN Maxwell is an estate with a history and a global reach which belies it's modest size. One notable block of vine originates from stock imported to South Australia by John Reynell over 150 years ago. Maxwell's cuttings were taken directly from the original Reynella vineyard, planted over three decades ago into the shallow topsoil over solid limestone soils on the crest of the estate. The property makes the most of an early ripening, even in extreme weather conditions, grapes are harvested with generous flavours, fine tannins and deep colours. Little Demon is a mostly Shiraz wine, seamless with Grenache and Mourverdre, matured eighteen months in a selection of seasoned French oak hogsheads.

Dark red purple hue. Floral bouquet abundant with black cherry and plum fruits over hints of aniseed, black olive and tar. Dark berry fruits and cherry persist on the palate with hints of black pepper and long savoury tannins. The Little Demon exhibits great weight of fruit, superb length and remarkable balance. Made to enjoy upon release, a good match with risottos, carpetbag and farced vegetables.

Named for the labyrinthine conifer maze along old Ellen Street adjacent to the Maxwell wineworks, Minotaur is a McLaren Vale icon, treated to a minimalist old world vinification and two years repose in a selection of the finest French oak puncheons. Exquisitely perfumed with dark tarry fruit bouquets, cherries, cigar box and caravan spice, its voluminous palate continues to unravel layers of complexity as the wine breathes and evolves. Fewer than 200 dozen are ever vintaged, an immense Shiraz of power, purity and persistence.

$9799each $1175DOZEN EACH DOZEN

Since 1979 Maxwell have built a reputation for producing hand made, rich and robust red wines that combine exquisite fruit quality with structure and finesse. Shiraz is a specialty and their superlative efforts have brought Maxwell much acclaim for their definitive McLaren Vale regionality and purity of expression. The shared sentiment around the Maxwell wineworks, is that life's too short to drink bad wine. A generously proportioned Shiraz with excellent depth of flavour, long, velvety tannins and splendid palate length.

$2299each $275DOZEN EACH DOZEN Situated right at the original heart of McLaren Vale, just north of main street on gently rolling hills, Maxwell's is the perfect place to make wine. There are five unique open fermenters, the idea being to recreate the gentle hand plunging methods of years gone by. Vinified over the course of several days to dryness, these fermenters provide a soft method of extraction, colour, flavour and tannin, from the skins and seeds into the juices. Holding only two tonnes each, they afford the team an opportunity to focus on premium small batch vinification techniques and to treat each parcel of fruit individually. The finished wine is matured sixteen months in a mix of seasoned and new French and American oak hogsheads.

Deep dark red with crimson hues. The bouquet is abundant with dark plum and blackberry fruits, coupled by hints of mocha, spice and a dash of liquorice. Delivers all the virtues of the finest McLaren Vale Shiraz, a plush palate showing rich dark berry fruits, mulberry and dark chocolates with underlying notes of freshly ground black pepper, matched by subtle oak.

Fashioned from the pick of parcels, a collation of deep, dry farmed old vines grown to deep Blewitt Spring sands, conjoined with harvests from the balmy Biscay clays on the coast of Gulf St Vincent. Grenache plays the leading role, a dark cherry lift with a seductive mid palate, Shiraz contributes juicy mouth feel, dark fruits and earthy olive tapenade characters. Sagrantino, adds beautiful dry earth, cigar box-like savoury lift with those signature tannins giving a drying, snappy finish.

$3299each $395DOZEN EACH DOZEN Grenache is picked off parcels of gnarly bush vines at Blewitt Springs in the the northern Vale, Shiraz and Sagrantino parcels are sourced further south from the eminent Lopresti Vineyard, just east of Port Willunga. Varietal components are separately handled, destemmed without crushing and pumped over daily throughout a course of cool temperature ferments, aimed at optimal extractions of flavour and tannin, while preserving the dominance of fruit. Batches are filled to a selection of seasoned French oak barrels for completion of malolactic and eighteen months maturation before assemblage. The final inclusion of Lopresti Vineyard Sagrantino, contributing structure and enhancing complexity.

Bright ruby/purple. Bramble herbs and cracked black pepper, underpinned by earthy, dark fruit characters, satsuma plum, black cherries and liquorice. Lifted anise, nutmeg and dark fruit palate, crushed pepper and mixed spice, a dense and multilayered wine that retains freshness, while articulating the savouryness of the mix, richness and vibrant fruit.

From a single parcel of vine at the southern end of McLaren Vale near the seaside town of Willunga, paradoxically known to the vignerons as Sandra. Fruit is gently crushed and pumped over for ten days of ferment, followed by eighteen months in a selection of mostly seasoned French oak, aimed at preserving the feminity of a distinctly supple block of Shiraz. Prettily perfumed of ripe backcurrants, mintyness, espresso and plum, her moreish chocolate box flavours are beautifully balanced by crisp morello acidity and supported by grippy, savoury tannins.

$3299each $395DOZEN EACH DOZEN