S H I P SS H I P ST E R S ' R A PT E R S ' R A PT U R ET U R E

Single Vineyard Shiraz 2012McLaren Vale, Shiraz (100%)

The NameThe NameShipsters' Rapture is named in honour ofHenry Shipster who owned the vineyardbefore the Osborns. The Shipsters are saidto have delighted in their small plot of land,lovingly planting it to vines in the late1800's.

The VintagThe VintageeA wet summer and winter in 2011 set thevines up perfectly for the 2012 vintage.Spring and summer were drier than normal,resulting in lower fruit yields. A small heatburst just prior to veraison assured a solidcolour change, small berries andpronounced tannins in the grapes. The redwines from this vintage are black, solid andquite structured, the biggest year for sometime; not oily but definitely gutsy.

The WinemakingThe WinemakingSmall batches of grapes are crushed gentlyand then transferred to five tonne headeddown open fermenters. These batchesremain separate until final blending. Foottreading is undertaken two thirds of the waythrough fermentation. The wine is thenbasket pressed and transferred to a mixtureof new and used French and old Americanoak barriques to complete fermentation.The barrel ferments are aged on lees, thereis no racking until final blending and nofining or filtration.

The CharacterisThe CharacteristicsticsShipsters' Rapture in youth can appear alittle tense, probably as a result of theflashes of pine and mint that accompany thedark, ripe, mulberry like fruits. A realcontrast in characters showing elementsfrom opposite ends of the flavour spectrum.The palate follows a similar theme, withdark, sweet and sooty like flavours matchedwith spicy pepper and more minty notes.The mint character gives an impression ofmid palate elegance to the wine althoughthe fine, minerally tannins point towardsimpressive longevity which will see that midpalate grow in richness and generosity. Aclassic example of elegance and power.

Harvest dates 2 March2 March Alcohol 114.8%4.8%Residual sugar 00.8 g/l.8 g/l Titratable acid 77.2.2pH 33.50.50 Oak maturation 20 months20 monthsChief Winemaker ChesChester Osbornter Osborn Senior Winemaker JJack Wack Waltonalton

O S B O R N R O A D / P O B O X 1 9 5 M C L A R E N VA L E S O U T H A U S T R A L I A 5 1 7 1

T E L E P H O N E + 6 1 8 8 3 2 9 4 8 8 8 · FA C S I M I L E + 6 1 8 8 3 2 3 9 8 6 2 · D A R E N B E R G . C O M . A U

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