The Wine Front 94 points.
Geelong shiraz at the hand of Nick Farr. Some whole bunches and wild ferments but the fruit is the thing. The fruit feels ripe but it also feels fresh and juicy. You’d call this an elegant wine but the swoosh of boysenberry, redcurrant and black cherry certainly fills your mouth with fruit flavour. Herbage, peppers, coffee, nuts and florals all make positive appearances. It’s a walk in a green garden in full bloom. It’s seamless and yet there’s so much going on. Yes. This is excellent. WF 94.
This Shiraz fruit comes from an original By Farr site planted in 1994. It is a black cracking clay soil, which dries very quickly and is the first of the Shiraz vineyards to be picked. Being a warmer site than the other on the property, it fits perfectly into the Farr Rising line-up and shows that refinement and fruit flavour can come together. The fruit is 85 to 90% destemmed, then cooled prior to fermentation. It is a natural fermentation where the fruit is in the tank for 19 days before pressing. Shiraz sees 18 months in French oak, 10% of which is new, and is bottled under vacuum. The bouquet is showing the elements of the wine with a whole bunch character, rich red and black fruits with the hint of French oak. The texture of the wine is velvety, yet it has opulent fruit flavour with fine tannins and complemented by lively acidity. Simply a delicious wine to drink.
