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The Dirtman Shiraz by Gibson Wines is named after Rob Gibson, owner and winemaker. With love of viticulture and the soil, Rob has always been referred to as The Dirtman. This attractive Shiraz has wonderful rich, dark cherry notes with plums and a touch of apricot thrown in. The texture on the palate is vibrant with a length that is simply perfect.

Deep red with purple hues. The nose is complex with chocolate, coffee and raspberry aromas balanced by lifted liquorice, leather and a hint of white pepper. The palate is rich and full bodied with prominent raspberry flavours, alongside beautifully balanced oak with hints of vanilla. 2018 was a high-quality vintage in Barossa, with good yields and excellent flavours and colours in reds. The growing season started off well, thanks to winter 2017 rainfall being around 10% higher than average. Spring rainfall however, was lower than usual and drier soils, combined with warmer than average October and November days meant the vines grew quickly; flowering well and setting a good number of bunches. January and February were warm and dry, with very warm temperatures in February slowing the pace of ripening. The Indian summer of March and early April proved perfect for finishing off ripening before vintage, capping off a very good year.After picking, the grapes were fermented in a combination of five tonne concrete and seven tonne stainless steel fermenters for 7-12 days. The wine was then racked off into a combination of French and American hogsheads and matured for 22 months. One of the largest landholders in the Barossa, Grant Burge wines is a bastion of well made, value for money wines. Drawing on depth of experience in the region, Grant Burge and his wife Helen established the brand in 1988 and have developed a formidable range of wines across a broad spectrum of price points. The history of the Burge family and their long association with winemaking in the region can be traced back to March 1855, when noted tailor John Burge immigrated to the Barossa from Hillcot, near Pewsey in Wiltshire, England with his wife Eliza and their two sons. John worked as a winemaker at Hillside Vineyards and his love of viticulture was passed onto his son Meshach, who continued the tradition making his first wine in 1865, while becoming a prominent community leader. Meshach married Emma in 1883 and they had eight children. First-born Percival established the Wilsford Winery near Lyndoch in 1928. Percival had two sons, Noel and Colin, and Colin and his wife Nancy had one son, Grant. Following in the footsteps of his father and forefathers before him, Grant carried the winemaking tradition into the 21st century. Grant Burge Wines came under the ownership of the Accolade Wines' family of brands in 2015. Since then, the winery has flourished both nationally and internationally.

HEAD Old Vine Shiraz, Barossa Valley The hand-picked fruit comes in small parcels from up to 100-years-old vines. Theres a little whole-bunch fermentation prior to 12 months in a mix of old and new barrels. There is a measure of Old Vine Grenache to lighten up the classic Barrosa Valley Shiraz richness.

Medium depth crimson with purple hues. Ripe red fruits and black cherry on the nose with mocha, subtle savoury and herbal notes adding complexity. The bright and juicy fruits coat the palate and are balanced by pepper and sweet spices. Medium-bodied in structure with great complexity and lovely silky tannins which flow through the fruity, peppery and spicy finish. Despite a later than anticipated start and an earlier than usual finish, the 2018 compressed harvest produced wines of deep colour, flavour and balance across the board. 35% Grenache, 34% Shiraz, 31% Mourvedre. Matured for 12 months in seasoned oak. The site where the Langmeil winery now sits was originally settled by Blacksmith Christian Auricht way back in 1842. Christian went on to establish a bakery, smithy, a butcher's shop and a cobbler as well as planting a 1 hectare vineyard on the estate. This vineyard, still in use today, has been called the Freedom 1843 block and is believed to be one of the oldest Shiraz vineyards in the world. Flash forward 160+ years and the Langmeil winery and vineyard is back in family hands, with Carl Lindner, Richard Lindner and Chris Bitter now owning this historic Barossan estate. Like many Barossan estates with a bent for traditional full bodied reds, Langmeil prefers open fermenters and basket presses, utilising these fabulously archaic methods for over half its grape intake of approximately 1000 tonnes. In a similar vein, the wines are only minimally handled and minimally filtered before bottling in an attempt to preserve natural flavour and complexity.

Dark berry fruit with hints of peppery spice. Soft upfront notes of plums and blackcurrants with integrated oak structure. The finish is soft wth elegance and depth

Made from single vineyard to bottle. Low yields cool climate grapes from Nangkita. Deep sandy soil and limestone beneath, rich in elements for natural aromas and flavours. The wine is dark plum with lifted complex oak aroma. The palate has full flavour with rich berry fruit, warm, rich and intense. Upfront and splendidly appealing, the wine shows blackberry, sweet cherry, rich floral and vanillin oak notes, followed by a beautifully weighted palate that's plump and juicy, finishing lingering and silky. At its best: now to 2033. By Sam Kim, Wine Orbit. Nov 2022.