Sanguine Estate, Heathcote, Victoria
Sanguine Estate is a family operated boutique vineyard and winery located in Heathcote region of Central Victoria.
The Sanguine estate has three distinct vineyards, namely the Sanguine mixed block, the flagship Sanguine Estate Shiraz vineyard and the Progeny Shiraz vineyard. Sanguine Estate is a fully integrated wine business with estate vineyards and a modern gravity fed winery located on each estate.
Viticultural Practices
The boutique vineyard and winery is a family enterprise intent on making concentrated, sophisticated and complex wines inspired by our unique Heathcote terrior, a fault line of ancient Cambrian red rock pulverized over 510 millions years into soil. We have utilized the vertical shoot positioning trellis system to open up the canopy, reduce the risk of disease and expose the bunches to direct sunlight for ripening. The vines are cane pruned to a single fruiting wire with a maximum of 20 buds per vine. Crop levels are naturally low and hence bunch thinning is generally not required and irrigation kept to a minimum with some blocks being unirrigated. To conserve the natural balance within the soils and hence the overall health of the vines, we aim to minimize the use of chemicals. In fact, over the past few years, they have managed the vineyard organically by utilizing organic fertilizers and employing other techniques such as mulching to control weed growth. It is Sanguine's practice to utilize organic principals in the first instance and then if absolutely necessary, use small amounts of chemicals to target specific parts of the vineyard.
Wine Style Notes
"We utilize traditional winemaking practices such as small fermentation tanks, natural fermentation (ie no yeast additions) and gravity feeding. Whilst this can be quite labour intensive, we believe it ensures the preservation of natural fruit flavours and the Heathcote terrior character. This wine is a combination of Shiraz and Viognier (approx. 3%) that are hand picked at the same time and co-fermented to ensure good integration. As with all varieties produced at Sanguine Estate, the grapes were destemmed, lightly crushed and then naturally fermented with wild indigenous yeasts in small open fermenters. The wine is then transferred via gravity (to avoid pump shock) to predominantly French oak barriques (approximately 10% new) and left to mature for approximately 18 months."
Tasting Notes
Fruit of blackberry and blueberry with strong aromas of liquorice and spices. The aromatics are dark and brooding. The pallet is fruit driven and rich with a long and spicy finish. Well balanced with lingering soft tannins. The Progeny Shiraz is an elegant wine that will open up with decanting and will cellar well.
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