McHenry Hohnen Rolling Stone, Margaret River

Description

McHenry Hohnen Rolling Stone is the flagship red wine blend from this fantastic family-owned estate.

The Hohnen and McHenry families had been growing grapes in Western Australia since the 1970s but it was until 2006 that David Hohnen joined his brother-in-law Murray McHenry to found McHenry Hohnen. They source grapes from family-owned vineyards sites around the southern part of the Margaret River wine-growing region. The Mediterranean climate of the Margaret River is perfectly suited to growing varieties associated with southern France and Spain as well reflecting the regions heritage with Bordeaux varieties. Common sense farming philosophies are employed, cultivating a system in which soil and its organisms, along with plants, insects and animals co-exist in a thriving equilibrium. Vineyard management embraces sustainable ‘old school’ practices following biodynamic principles.

The fruit for McHenry Hohnen Rolling Stone is sourced predominantly from Hazel’s Vineyard in the southern part of Margaret River.. The vineyard was developed in 1998 when Murray McHenry purchased an old farm south of Witchcliffe and planted 40ha of vines.  The vines are planted on a north facing slope of ironstone gravels on a tributary of the Upper Chapman Brook. This northern exposure, with some southerly cooling influences, makes this a great site. It is here that the state of the art “Vintners” winery is located. The vineyard is is named after Murray McHenry and Sandra Hohnen’s mother. With a northerly aspect, the vines enjoy long days of sunshine, moderated by the vineyard’s southern location. The soils here are clay and ironstone pebbly soils, great for growing vines, treacherous on the roads – hence the name “Rolling Stone”.

The Rolling Stone 2012 is a Bordeaux style blend of 28.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28.5% Malbec, 28.5% Merlot and 14.5% Petit Verdot. The best parcels of fruit are gently de-stemmed into stone open fermenters for a pre-ferment cold soak; wines are hand plunged for gentle extraction with Cabernet and Petit Verdot undergoing extended maceration for soft and savoury tannins. Malbec is pressed sweet and racked to barrel for added texture and softness. All wines are matured in the finest French Oak barriques, most of which are two and three years old. It is held in oak for 18 months prior to bottling. The wine remains unfined and unfiltered.