Digital writing - Mount Stapylton website
Vintage personality
Mount Stapylton Shiraz is a single block in the Grampians that strongly expresses the individuality of the vintage, as does their Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grown in the Upper Yarra Valley.
Whether the grapes were grown during a frigid spring, hot or mild summer, or a dry autumn, each passing day and variation in the elements is inscribed onto the personality of the wine. To mark each growing season’s diverse personality, Howard and Samantha Staehr have dedicated each wine a member of their family. Taken as a vertical vintage bracket, Mount Stapylton Shiraz is a fascinating study in seasonally diversity.
Together with regional specialist winemakers Don McRae (Grampians) and Caroline Mooney (Yarra Valley), Howard and Samantha Staehr insist on minimal intervention in both the vineyard and winery, sustainable viticulture practices and the production of the highest quality fruit. Each vintage calls for subtle changes in the process: the vines are supported by drip irrigation to cope with weather extremes, there’s minimal use of additions in the vineyard, the grapes are selectively hand-picked, gently crushed and pressed and fermented in high quality oak.
Grampians
2011 Shirley Grampians Shiraz – a gracious, refined and cooler vintage full of lavender, white pepper, blood plum, blueberry, mulberry; with complex minerality, savoury charcuterie, black olive, cigar box notes and silky tannins that would reward careful aging for more than 10 years. 13% Alc./Vol. Winemaker, Don McRae.
(91 points, James Halliday Wine Companion. 89 points, Robert Parker Wine Advocate Aug 2013)
2012 Howard Grampians Shiraz – a rich, intense warmer vintage redolent with black cherry, blackberry bramble, dark chocolate, ground coffee, roasted hazelnuts; deep minerality layered with vanillin and coconut French and American oak, plush grape tannins and supple power that will continue to improve up to 15 years. 13.8% Alc./Vol. Winemaker, Don McRae.
(Gold Medal International Wine & Spirits Competition, London. Gold Medal China Wine & Spirit Awards. Silver Medal Syrah du Monde, France 2014. 94 points, James Halliday Wine Companion.)
2013 Jeffery Grampians Shiraz – a brooding, penetrating very warm vintage that expresses the genuine concentration of Grampians Shiraz evocative of fleshy blackberry and ripe cherry, charred meats, leather, tobacco leaf; savoury and chewy tannins from both the fruit and French and American oak will continue to evolve in the cellar for 15 years or more. 14.9% Alc./Vol. Winemaker, Don McRae.
(Gold Medal International Wine Competition, Vienna 2015).
2014 Ivan Grampians Shiraz – a complex, intense and exceptional vintage white pepper, ripe cherry, plum, earthy beetroot, roasted chestnut; granite minerality, concentrated, juicy and integrated palate and luxuriant American and French oak and grape tannins will continue to develop from release over more than a decade. 14% Alc./Vol. Winemaker, Don McRae.
(Yet to be released.)
Yarra Valley
2013 Pamela Yarra Valley Chardonnay – a vibrant, focused excellent vintage expressing peach blossom, bright apple, ripe grapefruit, white stone fruits, green pear; from high in the Upper Yarra Valley excellent minerality and a spine of acidity provide structure around complex marzipan and hay notes, drinking beautifully now and for three or more years. 13.1% Alc./Vol. Winemaker, Caroline Mooney.
(Silver Medal International Wine & Spirits Competition, London. Silver Medal China Wine & Spirit Awards. 94 points, James Halliday Wine Companion.)
2012 Sophia Yarra Valley Pinot Noir – a fine, delicate vintage prettily reminiscent of seasonal strawberries, pristine raspberries, summer pudding, red cherry, five spice and red apple acidity; a high altitude wine from the Upper Yarra Valley with fine perfume, minerality and acidity and complex leather and pepper notes to finish, drinking beautifully now. 12.9% Alc./Vol. Winemaker, Caroline Mooney.
(91 points, James Halliday Wine Companion.)
2013 Victoria Yarra Valley Pinot Noir – a complex, seamless excellent vintage that charms with concentrated red berries and dark stone fruits, ripe strawberry, charcuterie, beetroot, rich spice; from the cool and high site in a fine vintage, it possesses outstanding integration, balance, minerality and acidity, drinking beautifully now and for three or more years. 13% Alc./Vol. Winemaker, Caroline Mooney.
(Silver Medal International Wine & Spirits Competition, London. Silver Medal China Wine & Spirit Awards. Silver Medal International Wine Competition, Vienna 2015. 94 points, James Halliday Wine Companion.)