• Delivery
Wine clubWine clubWine clubWine club
  • Gift registry
  • Wishlist
  • FAQs
Samuel Smith migrated from Dorset England to Angaston in the colony of South Australia circa 1847, he took up work as a gardener with George Fife Angas, the virtual founder of the colony. In 1849, Smith bought thirty acres and planted vines by moonlight, the first ever vintages of Yalumba. One of his most enduring legacies were some unique clones of Shiraz, which were ultimately sown to the illustrious Mount Edelstone vineyard in 1912. Angas's great grandchild Ron Angas acquired cuttings from the Edelstone site and migrated the precious plantings to his pastures at Hutton Vale. The land remains in family hands, a graze for flocks of some highly fortunate lamb. In between the paddocks, blocks of Sam.. The return of rootstock to garden of eden»
The family Hentschke have been Barossa farming since 1842, they know from good soils and settle on nothing but the finest land. Keith Hentschke chose a special site along Greenock Creek, at the intersection of Gerald Roberts and Jenke Roads, near the ancient winegrowing hamlet of Seppeltsfield to plant vines in the early 1990s. They now yield vintages of the most amazing intensity, saturated with the essence of grand Barossa Shiraz, an international wine industry favourite and a sagacious selection this.. Savour a sip of seppeltsfield»
Constructed during early settlement by a supervisor of colonial convicts, at the very epicentre of the market gardens which serviced Hobart, Clarence House is a heritage listed manor which remains largely unaltered since the 1830s. It passed through several hands before being acquired by the Kilpatricks in 1993, who answered the call of Bacchus and established the grounds to vine. There are now sixteen hectares of viticulture, several significant Burgundy clones of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, with smaller plantings of Sauvignon and Pinot Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet and Tempranillo. What's most unique about the Clarence House vineyards are the soils and topography, a number of northeast slopes which catch.. Heirlooms of a hobart homestead»

Majella Shiraz CONFIRM VINTAGE

Shiraz Coonawarra South Australia
One of Coonawarra's leading viticultural estates and most eminent winemaking operatons, Majella has earned an enviable reputation for growing and bottling the region's very finest Shiraz. The most superior standards in vineyard management and an obsessive attention to detail make the wines of Majella, Coonawarra classics, highly esteemed by discerning enthusiasts around the world. There may not be a lot of it made each year but it is very, very good, anyone who thinks that Coonawarra is only for Cabernet needs to shout themselves a bottle of Majella Shiraz.
Available in cartons of six
Case of 6
$215.50
Majella was acquired by George Lynn in 1960 as part of an up and coming lamb enterprise. He had always been great friends with Eric Brand, who'd just started producing his illustrious Laira label. Eventually, seventy acres of about 60% Shiraz were planted, but as the vines matured in the 1970s, demand for grapes, particularly Shiraz was very low, and there were a couple of years when thirty or more tonnes of premium grapes were left to rot. Today, Majella stands proudly in first place on the Coonawarra Shiraz dais. As always the fermentation is completed in a selection of French and American oak hogsheads, followed by an extended eighteen months maturation.
Dark red colour with purple hues. Redolent of cinnamon spice with overlays of cedary mocha oak. The palate shows great length, full of plums, cherries, blackberries and vanilla, creamy and sweet. Tannins are soft and dusty, complementing the long, lingering finish. Coonawarra Shiraz at its very best. A decadent accompaniement to cherry glazed duck or crackling rib of pork.
Majella
1 - 9 of 9
1
1 - 9 of 9
1
Majella
The Lynn family have been residents of the Penola - Coonawarra district for over four generations, starting out as Store-Keepers and then graduating into grazing

The property on which Majella now stands was originally owned by Frank Lynn, and bought by his nephew, George, in 1960. George and Pat Lynn kept Merinos for wool production on their farm about ten miles away, and had always wanted some good Coonawarra country for their up-and-coming prime lamb enterprise. Viticulture, however, was not on their agenda until 1968.

Majella

George had always been great friends with Eric Brand. Eric had just started producing his wines under the Laira label and was selling some wine to the Hardy wine company. Brian was interested in planting a vineyard on the Majella property and in 1968 went ahead and planted 6 acres of Shiraz. Eric offered to buy the grapes to produce wine for Hardy's and the future looked rosy. There wasn't a lot of money in it, but it complemented the sheep enterprise, so eventually some 70 acres were planted - about 60% Shiraz and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon.

However, all good things come to an end, and the Hardy deal fell through just as the vines were maturing. Things were tight in the 70's. Demand for grapes, particularly Shiraz was very low, and there were a couple of years when 30 or more tonnes of premium Shiraz grapes were left to rot.

This was the start of a long relationship between Wynn's and Majella, a relationship that continued for over 20 years. Since 1989 Majella have continued planting new vineyards and at present have about 150 acres under vine. Most of the new plantings have been Cabernet Sauvignon, but there are some small areas of Merlot and Riesling planted as well.

Majella

The Majella winegrowers had always made a bit of wine up from their own select grapes, and knew that the quality was very good. After prompting from many of their peers, in 1991 they made up 600 cases or so of Shiraz.

The wine was vintaged at Brand's "Laira" winery (the link with Brand's won't go away) under the ever watchful eye of their winemaker, Bruce Gregory. This hit the market in 1993 and was received exceptionally well. The wine was good, the packaging looked good and the release sold out in no time.

Majella's production level soon reached the stage where new winemaking facilities were warranted, and high tech winemaking equipment was installed. Bruce Gregory joined as winemaker in January 1999 and produced a crackerjack vintage first up.

What happened to the sheep? They're still there although there's not much money in wool these days. The Majella winemakers still run about 3,500 Merino wethers on their remote farm south-west of Penola and raise about 400 prime lambs at Coonawarra.

Majella