Place of Changing Winds Heathcote Syrah 2019 Second Bottling

Deeper colour than the first bottling, with a darker and more luxurious aromatics. Very complex compote of red, blue and black fruits, violets, bay leaf, campfire, dark chocolate and Asian spices. Exceptional width across the palate, expansive and deep. More shiraz like than the first bottling, but no less ethereal or elegant. The deeper profile confers deeper tannins and the whole bunches carry and thrust the finish long. Immense Syrah, and one of the best in Australia. Waters Wine Co

Nearly one-third of the 2019 Syrah was set aside for 30 months in large, wooden, Stockinger casks (one 2,000-litre and one 1,000-litre). As with the first release, the fruit is drawn from a single vineyard on the east-facing slopes of Colbinabbin (pictured below) in the northern, Mount Camel Range subzone of Heathcote, Victoria. The soils are red/brown eroded basalt (the famous Cambrian soils), shot through with greenstone and jasper. The vines are grown without chemical inputs and with minimal irrigation (organic, yet to be certified). In the shed, the grapes were fermented naturally with 100% whole bunches, and this parcel resulted from a particular fermentation that ended up being a touch more extractive.

The colour is deepish red/purple and the complex bouquet has pepper-spice, floral and fragrant vegetable aromas, reflecting the whole-bunch ferment. The palate is elegant and very intense, medium to full-bodied and texturally fine-grained, the tannins silky and lovely. Impeccable balance, it’s a very fine shiraz indeed.” – 95 Points – Huon Hooke (The Real Review)