Turkey Flat Shiraz, Barossa Valley

Description

Turkey Flat Shiraz is made from 100% Shiraz from some of the oldest surviving Shiraz vines in the world (dating back to 1847).

Turkey Flat Vineyards are located on the banks of Tanunda Creek in the heart of the Barossa Valley and are named after the flocks of wild bush turkeys (actually Plains Bustards) that used to roam the area. The winery was founded in 1990 by the Schulz family who built a winery and cellar door at Bethany in Barossa. However, the family had actually owned vines, as well as a thriving butcher business, in the Barossa dating as far back as 1865. There were, however, Shiraz vines planted at Turkey Flat by Johann Fiedler in 1847, which were propagated from cuttings from Hermitage Hill in the Rhône Valley in the 1830s. Fiedler was one of the first Prussian Lutherans to make wine in the Barossa and was noted for his early efforts to experiment with grape varietals in the region. The winemaker is James Adams, a sixth generation Barossan born into a winemaking family dating back to 1919.

Today, the five vineyards that comprise Turkey Flat are currently owned and managed by the fourth generation Christie Schulz. Extensive viticultural research has been undertaken in the vineyards, allowing Christie and her team to sensitively blend traditional Rhone grape varieties with the 1847 Shiraz vines some of the oldest in Australia.

The grapes for Turkey Flat Shiraz come from hard-working gnarled old vines which still produce fantastic grapes. They are dry grown with their roots extending metres into the soil in search of moisture. After harvest the Shiraz grapes were fermented with 15% whole bunch, with half the remaining stems also included in the ferment. Maturation took place in a combination of neutral oak Foudre and neutral oak puncheons. The resulting wine shows beautiful floral and spiced aromatics, bright fruit that fills out into more complex spiced and savoury characteristics, and strong tannins that will ensure longevity.