Description
Zeitgeist: the spirit of the time; general trend or characteristic of a particular period in time.
Zeitgeist Shiraz… Diverse selection of Shiraz from Kalleske farm… untouched by time, oak or non-grape additives… capturing the spirit and character of vintage 2022.
By definition, each ‘vintage’ is unique. Rainfall, sunshine, temperature, wind, humidity all vary dramatically from year to year. The beauty of vines is that they characteristically reflect the season in their fruit. Traditional winemaking of maturing wine in oak barrels over time can result in the bright, fresh, unique characteristics of the vintage being less evident.
Hence, Zeitgeist has been bottled to showcase the 2022 vintage in all its primary vibrant glory. It is a cross section of multiple Shiraz blocks of the Kalleske family vineyard, ensuring a solid representation of the true character of the vintage.
Growing Season
The 2022 vintage was excellent. Winter was significantly wetter than average getting the vines off to a brilliant start leading into Spring which was cool with median rainfall. Summer was mild and dry apart from rain on the last day. Autumn remained mild with generally perfect mid-20s weather combined with cool nights ensuring steady even ripening across all varieties. The 2022 yields were good and the quality is great, a classic Barossa vintage displaying rich flavours with fine balance.
Vineyard
The Kalleske vineyard is a diverse mix of 120 acres of vines spread over the 500 acre farm. Shiraz dominates the plantings and multiple Shiraz blocks spanning from 1905 to 1998 were blended to make this wine. Shiraz from these blocks will go into the usual Kalleske Eduard, Greenock, Moppa and Clarry’s wines. All Shiraz vines are low yielding and soils are typically shallow sand with excellent clay subsoil.
Winemaking
The Shiraz blocks were harvested over numerous weeks from March 10th through to April 1st. Each batch was separately destemmed into an open top fermenter where it was native yeast fermented for 7-12 days on skins with hand pump-overs employed twice daily. The musts were pressed and a portion of each lot was set aside in stainless tank to create this Zeitgeist blend. Following natural malolactic fermentation and settling, the young wine was bottled forthwith, without sulphur dioxide, to capture the vibrancy and primacy of the vintage.
Tasting Notes
Colour:
2022 Zeitgeist Shiraz is vivid purple in colour.
Aroma:
Aromatics are primal and lifted with bright floral perfume, honeycomb, crushed red berries, mixed spice, and red liquorice with a touch of milk chocolate.
Palate:
The palate is energetic with lashings of flavour. Red fruits dominate with plenty of upfront juiciness leading into a finely structured and eloquent wine. Light grippy tannins give a strong backbone perfectly balancing the plush generous fruit. The finish is lengthy and radiant, completing a pure and expressive wine.
Recommended Drinking:
Zeitgeist is best enjoyed now with its primal characters.