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Joshua Cooper

2022

‘Shay’s Flat’

Cabernet Sauvignon   |   Landsborough Valley - Australia
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About

Josh has a distinct soft spot for the Cabernet wines produced in the 70’s and 80’s by the pioneering wineries of Central and Western Victoria, many of which seem ageless even now. The Shay’s Flat Vineyard is situated on an elevated and picturesque ridge in the heart of the Pyrenees. It’s a distinctively Australian setting with the vineyard surrounded by wheat paddocks, native bushland and scrub. The 20+ year old vines are rooted deep into mineral rich shale, quartz and mudstone soils, growing powerful, yet detailed fruit. Of Josh’s three Cab sites it is generally the second to ripen. 2022 was a worthy follow-up to 2021. These two vintages are a pigeon pair in terms of style, weight and ripeness. Again, there was ever-present disease pressure due to cooler weather. This resulted in lower yields in some vineyards, though also provided enhanced aromatics, detail and freshness.

Once hand harvested the fruit was entirely de-stemmed, then partially foot crushed before transfer to open fermenters where it remained for three weeks. The must was allowed to soak until natural fermentation commenced and was then extracted with a combination pumping over, delestage and pigage before basket pressing. Elevage took place in a combination of new Stockinger 300l (30%) and seasoned thin staved Bordeaux coopered barriques for 12 months, before four months in stainless steel after assemblage. The only addition to the wine is a small dose of sulfur.

Stats

  • Grapes: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
  • Vineyard: Shay's Flat Vineyard - Landsborough Valley
  • Vine Age: 23-years-old
  • Soil Type: Shale, sandstone, quartz, and clay
  • Viticulture: Certified biodynamic
  • Fermentation: Native – stainless-steel fermenters (whole berries with some foot crushing)
  • Skin Contact: 3 weeks
  • Aging: 12 months in Stockinger 300L hogshead (30% new) then 4 months in stainless-steel
  • Alcohol: 13%
  • pH: 3.85
  • Total Acidity: 5.2 g/L
  • Total SO2: 70 ppm
  • Total Production: 333 cases

Tasting Note

Vivid purple. Initially reticent until time and aeration reveal perfectly ripened blackcurrant and blood plum fruits, sweet baking spices and cedar, the faintest hint of mint combined with a ferrous complexity. Refined, firm grainy tannin shapes the wine elegantly, drawing to a finish of superb length and clarity.

Press & Reviews

The Wine Front

95

"This is athletic and poised, a wine of tannin-driven tension and freshness, corkscrews of fine, puckering chew in a weave. It’s exceptional in its length and persistence but shows impressive depth of fruit character too – blackberries, black olive, beautifully struck eucalyptus, black pepper, cola and charred spice. It’s aromatic and flavoursome, but the wine seems way more about its architecture and precision, with a strong sense of longevity for the wine in tow. It’s a treat to drink now, regardless."

- Mike Bennie
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Producer


Joshua Cooper

Region


Landsborough Valley

Country


Australia

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