Heartland - Spice Trader - Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon 2014

Vintage

The 2014, 52% Shiraz and 48% Cabernet Sauvignon, comes from a gentle year that has yielded wines of great potential. The growing period presented a minor frost event in September and a cool early flowering period. Reduced and variable fruit set in early flowering blocks impacted yields particularly for early Cabernet Sauvignon.

Estate

Owner and winemaker Ben Glaetzer's work in Langhorne Creek is one of the most exciting stories in Australia today. Heartland Wines came out of a lunch in 1999 between Ben and three friends, and a fear that rather than expressing the diversity of sites and rich history of the country, Australian wines were heading in a generic, commercial direction. Ben had grown excited at older, high quality vineyards he had seen in the cool-climate Langhorne Creek area, Australia's oldest settled wine region, one hour south of Adelaide and southeast of McLaren Vale. The Heartland Wines from Langhorne Creek display the originality and appeal of the area's regional and varietal characteristics – they are food-friendly, balanced wines offering tremendous value.

Vinification

The Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon are fermented separately with specific parcels included for their ability to offer greater complexity and character. Time in barrel, 12 months, permits a softening of the wine's structure. It also offers a complex expression of the fruit and helps accumulate the exotic notes of spice. The barrels are 2-3 years old French and American oak hogsheads.

Wine

Just as the spice traders of old, Heartland invested time and effort and risk all in search of these exotic flavors. Hunting for those elusive spices that fascinate the palates and capture imaginations. Wine should be an adventure.

Australia South Australia Langhorne Creek