Barossa Chapters Grounds Barossa Chapters Grounds

Barossa owes much to Europe. Its name, cultural instincts, languages, food, viticultural and heritage, are all transportations that have been moulded and honed by 175 years of Australian innovation. Barossa

One could be forgiven for thinking Entrepreneurs with big visions built white such as and Barossa was settled by the Spanish. stone wineries and started making as well as medium body Its name can certainly be traced fortified “ports” and “sherries” as well reds such as Shiraz and Cabernet. back to the windswept Barrosa Ridge as fine table wines called “claret” and Now Barossa is the most recognised in the Spanish region of Andalusia “hermitage” and “burgundy”, paying name in Australian winemaking, due to where in March 1811 Lieutenant homage to European tradition. Barossa its forgiving viticultural environment, General Thomas Graham of the became the largest -producing its treasure-trove of century old British Army defeated the French region in by the turn of the pre-phylloxera vines and its six Marshal Victor, during the Napoleonic century, sustaining a community of generations of grapegrowing and Peninsular Wars. grapegrowers, winemakers, cellar winemaking heritage. hands and coopers and earning Graham received a peerage and significant export income for the state But it has also evolved over 175 years was named Lord Lynedoch but it was of . into much more than a wine region. his young aide-de-camp Lieutenant Old Silesian cultural food traditions who was to remember Through the 20th century Barossa had continue to be celebrated, such as the the name. When he was appointed its booms and busts – Imperial demand fermentation of meats into sausage Surveyor General of the new colony of crashed during both wars and in the and wursts; salting and smoking South Australia in 1836 and discovered post-war 1960s and 1970s customers hams and bacon; the preservation of a verdant valley he named it Barrosa wanted sweet sparkling wines such as fruits and vegetables such as pickled – and a slip of the pen by a public Barossa Pearl and Cold Duck. onions and dill cucumbers and the administrator gave the region its Finally Barossa settled on what its soils maintenance of age old baking unique name, Barossa. and climate do best – ripening red wine traditions: sour dough breads, pretzels grapes – and from the 1980s onwards and streuselkuchen. However it was not Spanish but English its fame grew for its full bodied Shiraz and Silesian settlers who pioneered and Cabernet, and Mataro. There are also European music traditions the region. The English, including the In the late 1990s during an still maintained such as brass bands and colony’s founder George Fife Angas, international boom in demand for men’s and women’s choirs and Barossa took over pastoral sheep and cattle , the Australian Wine continues to be the epicentre Lutheran runs in Eden Valley, east of Angaston; and Corporation decided to faith in Australia with more than a and the Silesian settlers – mainly define Australia’s regions along similar dozen steepled churches dotted across peasant farmers and artisans fleeing (but less restrictive) lines to Europe’s the valleys. Prussian religious persecution – settled appellation system. the Valley floor at Bethany, Langmeil, This colourful culture has attracted Tanunda and Nuriootpa. The Barossa’s winemaking geographic thousands of new settlers over indication zone was formalised in 1997, subsequent generations, continuing After experimenting with a range comprising two regions: the warmer the immigration that started in the of crops, from flax to tobacco, the “floor” specialising in 1840s, making Barossa a vibrant, Silesians found the Mediterranean red wine and the cooler, higher altitude diverse and exciting contemporary climate suited wine grapes. Eden Valley, which focussed on fine Australian community. Barossa Chapters Grounds

Barossa Grounds

Barossa Shiraz is The benefit of Barossa’s uninterrupted Eden Valley followed by controlled an ever unfolding 175 years of regional grape-growing winemaking studies and annual story of diversity and winemaking is the accumulation of tasting reviews. – a story of how knowledge – stories, gut feelings, yarns variety, climate, and folklore, sometimes scribbled soil, landscape, in diaries and vintage log books but More than 80 sites have so far been grower and often just passed down verbally from analysed and as the project has winemaker come generation to generation. progressed additional data has been overlaid in terms of soil water- together to create Every grower has these stories – the holding capacity – a major influence a tapestry of place in a where the vines on vine canopy growth – as well as colours, aromas struggle, the other bit of dirt where temperature, rainfall, and elevation. and textures in our they inexplicably flourish. Winemakers What growers have known for wines, all from the also come to know the difference in generations, that Barossa is an different grounds aroma and colour from vineyard to extraordinarily complex place to of Barossa. vineyard, how one parcel of grapes grow grapes, has now been revealed produces flavours of fresh raspberries in independent data that will be a and a neighbouring lot will taste like reference for the next century. dark chocolate. Barossa Shiraz is one of the great regional wine-styles of the world. Now This repository of information is as it is clear there is not one style but consistent and reliable as its owners, dozens of variations on this theme, all but until 2008 was undocumented. influenced by place as much as the winemaker’s hand. That was when the Barossa Grounds project was launched, a chance to This has both inspired and recognised evaluate the link between landscapes, a gradual move to more single soil types, meso-climates and vineyard wines bringing an exciting variations of wine style – specifically richness and diversity to the Barossa Shiraz – across the . Shiraz experience.

Barossa Grounds involves the The consumer is the big winner – if you collection of climatic data and analysis enjoy soft smooth plush flavours and of soil profiles across the “parishes” or aromatics you might be seeking out a sub regions of the Barossa Valley and wine from the south while if you like big Barossa Grounds is all about a deeper exploration of Barossa Shiraz – it’s a journey to find what those very tiny influences are on flavour and style. Part of the enjoyment of winemak- ing is working with different vintage conditions every year… but having a deeper knowledge of and connection with each vineyard makes us more of a custodian of that fruit and able to showcase it in the best way we can.”

Toby Barlow Chief Winemaker, St Hallett

muscular reds with mouth-puckering tannins, choose a single vineyard wine from the north of Barossa.

Barossa Grounds is a collaboration between the region’s member based Barossa Grape & Wine Association, South Australia’s leading soil scientists and viticulturists, wine critics, the State Government Department of Primary Industries and Regions and the Barossa’s most experienced grape- growers and winemakers.

Learn more and watch videos at barossa.com/wine/barossa-chapters. The Barossa Grounds Project

Australia’s most distinguished wine was onto something interesting and annual rainfall, growing degree days, writer, James Halliday, has written: “… quite special. elevation and slope, over plots of the truly fascinating Barossa Grounds individual . Project, (is) by some distance the best In 2013, at a Barossa Shiraz Symposium analysis of the terroir of a wine region held over two days, more than 150 Barossa Grounds ‘soil kits’ have also I have ever encountered, here or winemakers, growers, viticulturists, been put together to exhibit soil types, overseas. It all makes sense.” marketers, trade, media and educators ranging from alluvial sands and rich tasted wines from all over the Barossa fertile black soils in Southern Barossa, This is high praise from James Halliday. ‘grounds’. Everyone also went out to the infertile slopes overlaying the But it is not given lightly. It has taken 175 into vineyards to view soil pits dug limestone and ancient sandstone and years of Barossa grape growing and in eight Barossa locations and schist of Eden Valley – to the red clay winemaking experience to understand participate in a group discussion led loams of Northern Barossa. the climatic, soil and topographical by Soils of Southern South Australia influences on the variations in Shiraz author and renowned soil scientist, A small-batch winemaking trial in wine-style across Barossa. David Maschmedt. vintage 2014, combined with sensory analysis, was undertaken across nine of And it has taken the past 10 years, This was followed by a comprehensive the Barossa ‘grounds’ to demonstrate through the rigour of the Barossa 44-page technical report, developed in a scientific approach without Grounds Project, to analyse, interpret partnership with the State Government winemaking influence. and record all that is known about department PIRSA’s Spatial Information Barossa, and deliver the information in Services team and the Barossa VitiTech More recently, the Barossa Grounds a way that is succinct, compelling, and Group, which comprises dozens of Project has been drawn on as the easily communicated – both at home colourful maps showing classifications basis for a national investigation into and on the global stage. of distinctive soil types, and Australian terroir, led by the University variations in climate and topography of ’s, Dr Cassandra Collins, The Barossa Grounds Project is an across Barossa. whose team will explore how grapevine ongoing “journey of discovery”. In the genomics and metabolomics underpin words of St Hallett chief winemaker, A consumer-facing Barossa Grounds wine quality and terroir. Toby Barlow: “It’s about the people of ‘brochure’ has been created, utilising Barossa building on that knowledge base the talents of distinguished wine Referring to the Barossa Grounds about Shiraz farming in the landscape. educators and wine writers, notably Project in a 2015 Decanter article, It’s about growing our expertise, so the University of Adelaide’s Patrick English journalist Andrew Jefford wrote: we can continue to lead the world in Iland and Langtons’ Andrew Caillard “It is compellingly interesting, and a more Shiraz production.” MW. Extensive photography and a coherent and systematic account of Barossa Grounds video series, filmed terroir than any I have ever seen emanate The rigorous approach, led by the by Dragan Radocaj, features Barossa’s from Burgundy, from Bordeaux or from Barossa Grape & Wine Association most experienced winemakers any other European fine wine region. It’s and a dedicated volunteer committee and viticulturists reinforcing the not that the data is missing elsewhere; it’s of local winemakers and growers, messages behind the diversity of the just never synthesized in this way.” began in earnest in 2008 with the Barossa Grounds. introduction of an annual wine tasting The work of the past is being used to and descriptive analysis of 80 unoaked, Barossa’s regional website inform some of the grape growing and single vineyard Shiraz supplied for barossa.com features an interactive winemaking decisions of the future. The this purpose. The statistical analysis Barossa Grounds map, where the user ongoing journey of discovery being and interpretation of the results by the can toggle pdf layers ‘on’ and ‘off’ shared with anyone connected to University of Adelaide that followed to see the different influences of soil Barossa, looks very promising indeed. provided confirmation the region type, water-holding capacity, mean The taste of Barossa Valley & Eden Valley Shiraz Barossa Valley Eden Valley Altitude Altitude 112-597m (53%<280m) 217-630m (99%<280m) Climate Climate Warm and dry during the growing season. The warm The higher the altitude results in wetter and cooler weather. conditions help build weight and fruit richness to the wines. Day time temperatures can be 2-30C cooler (night time temperatures 5-70C cooler) than the Barossa Valley. The cooler Soils conditions result in a more elegant perfumed, linear-shaped wine. Soils are very diverse ranging from the deep sandy loams to clay loams and red brown earths. Soils Mainly shallow, rocky soils. The taste of the wines Style The taste of the wines Full-bodied, opulent, rich, robust. Style Medium to full-bodied, vibrant, elegant. Colour Deep purple-red Colour Vibrant red. Aroma Blue and black fruits (dark cherry, fruitcake, plum, blackberry, Aroma mulberry, black olives) spice, chocolate, licorice. Mainly red and blue fruits (red and black cherry, raspberry, plum), violets, sage and pepper. Shape and texture Round and velvety. Firm tannins (chalky, grainy) Shape and texture moderate to strongly puckering and drying. Linear to oval, silky, savoury. Fine tannins (dusty, powdery) moderately to strong drying.

Diversity in the taste of Barossa Valley Shiraz

Southern Grounds Central Grounds Northern Grounds

Fragrant, elegant and smooth Softness and generosity Concentration and richness Wines from vineyards in the Wines from the Eastern edge of The Western Ridge around the parishes parish of Lyndoch the Barossa Valley, in the parishes of Greenock and is where, of Bethany and Krondorf. typically, you find the most powerful Altitude expressions of Barossa Valley Shiraz, 112-310m Altitude structured for ageing with black fruits 180-280m wrapped in firm muscular tannins. Climate Warm. Rainfall is higher than in Climate Altitude other parts of the Valley. Warm. In summer, cool afternoon Altitude of the flat land north of the parish and evening gully breezes moderate Soils of Nuriootpa is around 280m. Altitude of the temperature, providing the Western Ridge varies from 280-450m. Sandy loams to clay loams. relief for vines on hot days. Climate The taste of the wines Soils Warm. Sites on the Western Ridge with Sandy brown loams and east facing slopes provide relief from hot Style black cracking clays. Medium-to full-bodied, generous, afternoon sun. lush, elegant, refreshing. The taste of the wines Soils Soils vary but are predominantly Colour Style Deep red to purple-red red-yellow brown loams over red clay. Medium- to full-bodied, Shattered ironstones are found in the soils Aroma generous, vibrant. that are shallower here than elsewhere. A Mild red and blue fruit with some Colour small section of yellow and white sands is black fruit nuances (red cherry, Deep purple-red found in the area of Kalimna. raspberry, blueberry, plum) fragrant, violets, mint and chocolate. Aroma The taste of the wines Mainly red and blue fruits with a Shape and texture touch of black fruit (red cherry, Style Linear to oval, smooth, savoury. Fine, fruitcake, blueberry, plum), Full-bodied, opulent, concentrated, rich. gentle tannins (satiny and powdery), perfumed, mint and chocolate. moderately puckering and drying. Colour Shape and texture Deep purple-red Oval to round. Fine, supple tannins Aroma (silky and dusty), moderately Blue and black fruits (dark cherry, puckering and drying. blackberry, plum, black olives), dark chocolate, cocoa powder, inky, iodine. Shape and texture Round, velvety. Firm, strong, expressive tannins (chalky and grainy), strongly puckering and moderately drying. Barossa Grounds

Ebenezer BAROSSA STOCKWELL Northern Grounds Kalimna VALLEY Moppa

Moculta NURIOOTPA

Marananga Light Pass Seppeltsfield ANGASTON Stone Well Dorrien Central Grounds TANUNDA Vine Vale

Gomersal Bethany

Krondorf Keyneton

Rosedale

Rowland Flat

TO GAWLER LYNDOCH Flaxman Valley

Southern Grounds Craneford EDEN VALLEY

WILLIAMSTOWN EDEN VALLEY

Springton

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