Bethany First Village Grenache 2021

The cycle of life in the Barossa vines has been turning for over 150 years, since the Schrapel family planted their first vineyards in 1852. The family arrived in South Australia from Silesia and made their home in Bethany, the Barossa Valley’s first settlement. Today, with Bethany Wines being run by fifth and sixth generations of the same Schrapel family, the vines life cycle continues in much the same way as it always has, with minimal intervention from others so they can produce the best possible grapes and wines.

A long, gentle growing season combined with the natural cooling aspect of the Eastern Ridge of the Barossa Valley allowed our highly treasured and gnarled 50 - 80 year old Grenache vines to produce fruit with wonderful levels of freshness and balance in 2017. Opening with bright red cherry and redcurrant fruit on the nose complemented by subtle hints of hibiscus flower and clean red earth this wine has both freshness and complexity. On the palate there are crunchy red berry and orchard fruits and subtle spice character that are tightly wrapped up in a swathe of powdery tannins which carry the wine through to a long and balanced finish.

For us in the Barossa Valley, and more specifically for our little patch of dirt on the Eastern ridge of the Barossa Foothills, the weather conditions this year were just about perfect; warm ripening days, cool nights, a couple of splashes of rain in January and February, and a wonderful Indian summer through March and April allowing long, slow ripening of the grapes.  The upshot is that the fruit we harvested was perfectly ripe, with balanced fruit flavours, good natural acidity, lovely purity of expression and balanced sugar levels.  All this means one thing – great wines!  From our first pick on 19th February (Semillon) to our last pick on 25th April (Mataro) we were over the moon with the results.

Hand picked into 2 to 4 tonne grape trailers, the fruit was crushed and destemmed immediately after the morning harvest. Fermentation on skins using a selected yeast type occurred for 8-9 days at 20-25 degrees to maximise colour and flavour extraction.

Careful consideration was given to the aging of this wine, with a portion aged in seasoned oak, a portion in stainless steel and a small percentage in new French oak equivalent to 4% of the total blend. 

The Grenache fruit is sourced from low yielding old bush vines which are hand pruned to 50-60 buds per vine.  These old vines are grown on their own roots rather than grafted rootstock, naturally limiting the canopy growth and allowing for better fruit exposure to sunlight. 

This exposure ensures even ripening of the grapes with enhanced fruit flavour esters and colour ripeness. The fruit is hand picked very late in the season at optimal ripeness.