The wine has a deep, dark red colour. Aromas of plums and red berry fruitcake greet you on the nose along with hints of nutmeg. The palate is dense, very well rounded and supported with a smooth, velvety tannin structure along with flavours of mulberry, blackberry fruit and vanilla. The soft, complex palate will awaken your taste buds and undertones of chocolate and tobacco leaf will linger for a while and slowly fade away, leaving your palate satisfied.
Food Pairing
Slow cooked casseroles, herb-roasted or spiced meat and vegetable dishes, robust and ethnic dishes from all over the world served with savoury sauces with a little dark chocolate and flavoured with a dash of chili will all go very well with this wine. It will also pair well with game dishes It will love grilled or barbecued foods as it latches on to the pronounced ‘browning’ flavours that develop with these cooking methods and also pairs well with a rack of braaied spareribs with a sweet or spicy basting sauce. Our Shiraz also works with sweeter sauces, cranberry jellies and relishes that accompany many savoury dishes. It also loves everyday dishes such as cottage pie, bangers and mash, beef cooked in red wine, mushrooms on toast, and a mild, rare pan-fried steak.
Lourensford Estate Shiraz 2015 (6/case) (R119/BOTTLE)
Lourensford Estate experienced a moderate wet winter that allowed vines to go into proper dormancy that resulted in even budding. We did not have the usual severe South Easter winds at the start of summer. This resulted in very good and even budding and flowering of the vines. We experienced a fairly cool but very dry summer with moderate temperatures and cool nights that resulted in much faster ripening and the earliest recorded harvest dates in history on the Estate. The vines were generally very healthy and in good balance and harmony. With good canopy management and perfect ripening conditions we managed to bring the grapes in at just the desired time. This resulted in refined wines with elegance, good natural acidity and structure. The fruit were picked by hand early in the morning to protect the very delicate flavours and placed into 5 ton fermenters with regular, manual punch downs before the grapes were pressed and transferred to barrels for malo-lactic fermentation and ageing.
The harvest dates were February – March 2015.
Wine Information
Cultivar: 87% Shiraz,13% Cabernet Sauvignon
Wood: 15 months in 300L French oak barrels of which 30% was newIn The Vineyard
Altitude: 200-400m above sea level
Age of vines: 15 years
Rootstock: 101-14 Mgt
Clones: SH22, SH5, SH09
Slopes: Western facing slopes
Row direction: North-South
Soil type: Decomposed granite, Oakleaf and Tukulu formationsAnalysis
Alcohol: 14 vol %
pH: 3.53
Total acid: 5.3 g/l
RS: 2.9 g/l
Closure: Hand selected quality corkMaturation Potential
This vintage can be enjoyed up to 2020, but will reach its best drinking potential towards the end of 2018 and with optimum cellaring will peak only towards the end of 2019.
Food Pairing
Slow cooked casseroles, herb-roasted or spiced meat and vegetable dishes, robust and ethnic dishes from all over the world served with savoury sauces with a little dark chocolate and flavoured with a dash of chili will all go very well with this wine. It will also pair well with game dishes It will love grilled or barbecued foods as it latches on to the pronounced ‘browning’ flavours that develop with these cooking methods and also pairs well with a rack of braaied spareribs with a sweet or spicy basting sauce. Our Shiraz also works with sweeter sauces, cranberry jellies and relishes that accompany many savoury dishes. It also loves everyday dishes such as cottage pie, bangers and mash, beef cooked in red wine, mushrooms on toast, and a mild, rare pan-fried steak.