Sol Solice

2021 Spinifex Sol Solice

Vinification:

Vinification was similar with both blocks. Hand-picked fruit was fully destemmed and fermented with indigenous yeasts. Limited pigeage and pump overs were undertaken during the fermentation which lasted around 8 days after which the wines were pressed. The young wines were racked off lees to seasoned, thick staved French oak puncheons and demi-muids where they rested for 10 months prior to being racked, blended and bottled without fining or filtration.

Growing Season:

The ’22 is the inaugural release of “Sol Solice”, a selection of our finest Grenache of the vintage and this year is a blend is sourced from two vineyards. We manage both vineyards with organic principles and is hand pruned, thinned, and harvested.

The dominant component (64%) is from our Rostein Vineyard in the High Eden sub-region of Eden Valley. We planted the vineyard in 2018 with vine cuttings sourced from 7 old Grenache blocks from around the Barossa and Eden Valley that we have recognised as being exceptional. The vines grow in a thin sandy loam topsoil heavily shot with rose quartz gravel lying over a relatively pure layer of mica, in turn underlain by an oxidative red clay on a degraded schist and granite base.

The secondary component (36%) is from an old Grenache vineyard that we share farm in Light Pass – in the heart of the Barossa Valley. Dry grown, 60 years of age, growing in a friable red clay shot with quartz gravel. It has been grown “the old way” for a long time – no water, no inputs, hand pruned and picked – and yields are correspondingly very low.

2022 was a good growing and harvest season for the Barossa and Eden Valleys – well above average winter rainfall and a relatively dry and mild growing season resulted in a classically timed and extended harvest period delivering wines with good freshness and balanced maturity.

Tasting Notes:

Ripe fruit aromatics of raspberry, ripe cherry, blueberry and plum – laced with delicate baking spice and dried rose petal high notes – sit over base aromas of dried fig, ink and prune.

Full, strong palate – dark sour edged plum, prune and dark cherry fruits on attack are drawn to a firm, fine finish with lingering cherry pit and red plum skin acids and the deep, fleshy fruit is held in check by a strong measure of fine grained, compact tannin.