Charles Melton Voices of Angels Adelaide Hills Shiraz 2015  £65.00

CHARLES MELTON VOICES OF ANGELS ADELAIDE HILLS SHIRAZ 2015

Charles Melton Wines has produced premium Barossa red wines since 1984. At that time, Charlie and a small band of Barossan winemakers turned their winemaking efforts to what was then considered a couple of unfashionable varieties: Shiraz and Grenache. These wines were initially styled on those from the Rhône but are now considered leading examples of the varieties in their own right.

This wine is sourced from the Mount Pleasant vineyard which sits on the boundary of Eden Valley and the Adelaide Hills. Technically, this wine is from the Adelaide Hills, but spiritually the fruit is Eden Valley

2015 saw one of the earliest ever start to vintage with over 60% of Charlie's Barossa fruit picked in the first week of February. The Voices of Angels vineyard is typically one of the last to be picked, as the elevation and more southerly location give more moderate temperatures and higher rainfall. The grapes from this vineyard were harvested on 18th March.

Both varieties were picked on the same day and co-fermented at temperatures between 18-23°C, with daily pump-overs. The ferments were transferred to older oak barrels to undergo malolactic fermentation on full lees. The wine was then aged in new French oak barrels for 15 months with periodic lees stirring. The wine was blended and bottled, unfiltered.

This wine is a deep crimson colour with aromas of dark chocolate, black fruits and pepper. The palate has round tannins and a smooth finish.

97 Points - Wine Companion

Avant garde winemaking, coupled with high quality fruit, has worked to perfection. Single vineyard shiraz was co-fermented with 5% riesling in used French barriques, then pressed to 100% new French barriques for 15 months maturation on lees. While Charles Melton says the quality will be enhanced over the next 10 years, the Angels are already singing about a medium-bodied wine with perfectly integrated oak, silky tannins and a savoury edge to finish off the plum and blackberry fruit.

James Halliday