2018 Sandalford Prendiville Reserve Shiraz
Elegant and generous. This is a concentrated wine, which as it evolves in the glass, shows the full spectrum of berry flavours – from red to blue and then through to black berries. As with the nose, the savoury elements are there to add balance, opening up with mocha, nutmeg, fennel seeds and an earthiness. The tannins are smooth and silky soft and with the acid, they build to a long supple finish. This wine holds more in reserve and with the ninety percent new French oak, this wine is just a baby. Whilst drinking beautifully now, with careful cellar maturation for 15 years or more, this limited release of the Prendiville Reserve Shiraz will certainly reward the patient. (A deposit may form in the bottle during cellar maturation and decanting is recommended prior to serving).
Winemaker comments
Winemaker Notes
At optimal ripeness, the grapes for this wine, as with all the Prendiville Reserve’s, were hand-picked and transferred into small bins for transport. At the winery, the grapes were crushed into our small batch open fermenters and inoculated with a selected yeast strain. The traditional method of pumping over was used during fermentation, twice per day to facilitate colour, flavour and tannin extraction. After the completion of Malolactic Fermentation, the wine was aged in new and one-year old French oak barriques ls for twelve months. When blended, only the best seventeen barrels were put aside for this release of the Prendiville Reserve Shiraz.
Meet the maker
By the time I turned 18, I had become fascinated with wine. I was keen to learn as much about wine as I could and I received some great advice: to work in the industry before committing to any tertiary study....
Continue Reading > I was lucky enough to get my start at the cellars at Houghton Wines, here in the Swan Valley. I loved it, and it was the beginning of a career which was to eventually see me spend 20 years with Houghton’s. But first, I wanted to discover what traditional winemaking was like in the northern hemisphere. I took myself off to Burgundy, France, where I worked several vintages learning as much as I could about the craft of winemaking from some the best in the business. Returning to Australia I continued my career, picking up a few awards in the process of learning more and more about winemaking and achieving Bachelor of Applied Science and Oenology at Charles Sturt University, NSW. I was awarded the inaugural Gourmet Traveler Young Winemaker of the Year 2001, James Halliday’s Winemaker of the year in 2009, Winemaker of the Year in Ray Jordan's 2017 Annual West Australian Wine Guide, and I’ve judged extensively at capital city and regional wine shows. Australia makes some amazing world class wines! I’ve been fortunate to be Senior Winemaker at Sandalford Wines since March 2021 and I’m delighted every day by our estates’ old vines, the passion of the viticulture team here, and the outcomes we are able to achieve each vintage.
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Continue Reading > I was lucky enough to get my start at the cellars at Houghton Wines, here in the Swan Valley. I loved it, and it was the beginning of a career which was to eventually see me spend 20 years with Houghton’s. But first, I wanted to discover what traditional winemaking was like in the northern hemisphere. I took myself off to Burgundy, France, where I worked several vintages learning as much as I could about the craft of winemaking from some the best in the business. Returning to Australia I continued my career, picking up a few awards in the process of learning more and more about winemaking and achieving Bachelor of Applied Science and Oenology at Charles Sturt University, NSW. I was awarded the inaugural Gourmet Traveler Young Winemaker of the Year 2001, James Halliday’s Winemaker of the year in 2009, Winemaker of the Year in Ray Jordan's 2017 Annual West Australian Wine Guide, and I’ve judged extensively at capital city and regional wine shows. Australia makes some amazing world class wines! I’ve been fortunate to be Senior Winemaker at Sandalford Wines since March 2021 and I’m delighted every day by our estates’ old vines, the passion of the viticulture team here, and the outcomes we are able to achieve each vintage.
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Tasting notes
Varietals
Varietal
Shiraz
Colour
Other Notes
Dark cherry red.
Nose
Production
Full of mulberries, cherry and dark berries. There are underlying spices of star anise, cinnamon and pepper that add a savoury balance to the sweet berry fruits.
Palate
Tasting Note
Elegant and generous. This is a concentrated wine, which as it evolves in the glass, shows the full spectrum of berry flavours – from red to blue and then through to black berries. As with the nose, the savoury elements are there to add balance, opening up with mocha, nutmeg, fennel seeds and an earthiness. The tannins are smooth and silky soft and with the acid, they build to a long supple finish. This wine holds more in reserve and with the ninety percent new French oak, this wine is just a baby. Whilst drinking beautifully now, with careful cellar maturation for 15 years or more, this limited release of the Prendiville Reserve Shiraz will certainly reward the patient. (A deposit may form in the bottle during cellar maturation and decanting is recommended prior to serving).
Vintage Conditions
Vineyard Notes
The Sandalford Estate vineyard in Wilyabrup, Margaret River, is one of the largest and oldest vineyards in this famed region, having been originally planted in 1972. The Wilyabrup sub-region is in the northern end of the Margaret River GI. Wilyabrup is usually some 4 degrees Celsius warmer on average than the southern parts of Margaret River. This ensures optimal ripeness and generosity in the wines produced. There are five old vine blocks on the Estate. These are the oldest Shiraz vines in the Margaret River Region. Two of these old vine blocks have been utilised to make this wine. As with all Prendiville Reserve wines, they are only made in exceptional years and only in limited quantities.
