DRINKING WINDOW: 10-12 years
PRE-VINTAGE
RAINFALL: Dry winter/early spring | rain event early November.
TEMPERATURE: Consistently warm from late spring to early summer.
UPSHOT: Ideal ripening conditions | No disease pressure | Earlier expected harvest dates.
VINTAGE
RAINFALL: Rain event in late January
TEMPERATURE: Mild summer temperatures
UPSHOT: Vine relief | Slow sugar ripening | Increased flavour development | Delayed harvest | Exceptional seed and flavour ripeness balance.
G-Block: Shallow red clay loam overlying red plastic clay | North-south oriented rows | Elevated eastern aspect | Long even sunlight
Upshot: Soft elegant tannins | Complex aromatic and flavour profile
FERMENTATION: De-stemmed | Left on skins for 8-12 days | Slow ferment at 15-18°C | Open pump-overs and hand plunging | Basket pressed.
OAK: French – 65% new, 35% 2nd use | Natural malolactic fermentation | 22 months maturation.
Noteworthy Dates
HARVESTED: 15th & 27th February 2016
97 POINTS, THE REAL REVIEW
"Deep, dark purply-red colour, young for its age, and the rest of the wine follows on from there. Full-bodied and very rich, opulent, decadently so, with massive body and lashings of sweet blackberry, dark-plummy, almost jammy fruit flavour, backed up by plenty of supple tannin. The sweet fruit is dominating the oak and the wine is supple and more approachable than many of its type. It retains liveliness despite its opulence. A masterpiece of its genre." - HUON HOOKE
97 POINTS, THE WINE ADVOCATE
"The 2016 Shiraz Clos Otto is as good a wine as I can recall tasting from Hentley Farm. Boasting tremendous concentration, it somehow manages to harness that into a balanced, nuanced wine that should drink well for a decade and a half. Grace notes of mocha, vanilla and caramel sound like the latest hideous drink from Dunkin, but here it actually adds complexity to the bold blueberry, plum and raspberry fruit. It’s full-bodied and rich without being overblown, folding in more savory notes of earth, roasted meat and dried spices on the long, velvety finish." - Joe Czerwinski
