Giant Steps Tarraford Vineyard Syrah 2022

The 2022 season was high quality, but low yielding in the Yarra Valley. A very cool, wet and stormy spring resulted in some challenging conditions around flowering and hence very poor fruit set. The season proceeded to dry out into December, with a dry and warm Christmas period. This exacerbated the already small bunch weights, leading to bunches that weighed up to 40% lower than average. The mild temperatures meant long, slow ripening and flavour concentration throughout summer, with some well-placed rain in January refreshing the vineyards at just the right time. The strong canopies and low fruit load meant we sailed neatly into picking with very little disease or weather pressure affecting our picking decisions. The grapes from 2022 came off the vine with lovely concentration and flavour with great natural acidity and tannin.

Vineyard Notes
Location: Tarrawarra Planted: 1988 Elevation: 100 meters Soil Type: Grey clay loam Aspect: North, South and East facing slopes Size: 8.5 hectares Located in a protected valley, Tarraford Vineyard has a discreet microclimate, that is cooler than neighbouring sites. A diversity of aspect and clone provides multifaceted winemaking opportunities.

Winemaking
The final Tarraford Syrah blend is comprised of two separate ferments from Block 4. The Whole Bunch portions (70% of the blend) were fermented for 14 days before being pressed and completing malolactic fermentation in French oak puncheons (25% New). The Destemmed portions (30% of the blend) went through a longer cooler fermentation before being pressed and matured in foudre (2000L) for 10 months. The wine was then blended and returned to the seasoned foudre for an additional 5 months to integrate before bottling by gravity.