Nest Egg Shiraz, Bird in Hand

"All vineyard parcels are kept separate from picking to final blending. The parcel from Woodside was carefully selected to undergo whole bunch fermentation. 20% of the fruit was handpicked and tipped directly into the bottom of a small open fermenter. The remaining 80% was destemmed on top with a mix of crushed and whole berries. The other two parcels were gently destemmed, keeping a large percentage of whole berry, into open fermenters. The Macclesfield parcel was left to ferment with wild, native yeasts. The other two parcels were inoculated with specialised Shiraz strains to enhance the natural varietal characters. All fermenters were gently macerated each day during the 8-12 day of fermentation using a mix of plunging, gravity delestage and pump overs. Following ferment, fruit was air bag pressed to the finest French oak barrels for maturation. Once in barrels, the wine is only moved or transferred if required. The batches are checked monthly and topped to keep full and retain freshness. The 2016 Nest Egg Shiraz is comprised of 50% new French oak 225L barriques. Great care is used when selecting oak for wine of this quality and concentration. Only the finest grained oak is used to enhance the wine, giving weight, drive, mouthfeel and complexity."