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HAAN MERLOT PRESTIGE WINES, BAROSSA VALLEY, AUSTRALIA
Owned by Hans and Fransien Haan, the vineyard is located on the valley floor of the Barossa Valley in South Australia, one of the world's renowned grape growing districts. The 40 acre property was purchased in 1993, with the first wine produced in 1997. A few years later the property was expanded to 47 acres. Production is currently limited to approximately 4,000 cases, using only premium quality grapes produced on the estate. Only premium oak barrels are used for fermentation. No grapes are purchased, and seasonal conditions sometimes dictate the quantities produced.
The vineyard is run on a 'minimal input' system, offering considerable environmental protection. Chemical use is kept to an absolute minimum, as is irrigation and ground disturbance. Haan Wines also took out the prestigious award at IWSC in 2005 as 'Australian Producer of the Year'
HAAN MERLOT PRESTIGE
Grapes: Merlot 90%, Cabernet Franc 10%.
Viticulture: The Merlot vines are 17 years old, grown on a sandy loam with a 2 metre clay base. The vines are trellised on a single wire with two foliage wires to keep the foliage upright and expose the fruit to the maximum amount of sunlight. The fruit was allowed to ripen to 15◦ baume before picking and cropped at a level of 3.5 tonnes per acre.
Winemaking: This wine was fermented using a selected yeast to enhance fruit definition and depth. The skills were plunged and pumped over three times per day and the wine allowed to rest on skins for seven days to allow for maximum colour and flavour extraction. After malolatic fermentation the wine was racked into selected French oak barriques and allowed to mature for 24 months before bottling.
Tasting notes: The complexity and depth of aroma this wine places it well within the iconic range of Merlots. The wine is a balance of plum fruits, dark fruit cake and hints of mocha coffee. To complement the fruit weight there is a rich oak component which gives extreme length and structure to this wine.
Serve: While released with quite some readiness, there is no doubt that the Merlot Prestige will develop further with more bottle age. We expect it to show extremely well at around 8 - 10 years of age.
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