Glaetzer Bishop Shiraz 2008

The Glaetzer Family
The Glaetzer family has been part of the Barossa Valley and its viticulture history since 1888. After 30 years of winemaking, Colin Glaetzer established the family winery to create wines he's passionate about - limited quantities of benchmark Barossa Valley reds. Today, Ben Glaetzer carries on this winemaking tradition at Glaetzer Wines.

Name & Label
Bishop is the family name of Colin's wife Judith. In naming this wine, Colin wanted to pay tribute to his wine and to recognise her contribution to the family company. A powerful symbol dominates the label for the Bishop Shiraz. Fittingly, the sign of Venus, which has come to represent women and feminine energy, is the centrepiece of the Bishop label's symbol. The Symbol of Venus has also been linked back to ancient Egypt - a nod to the Bishop's link to Amon-Ra and Anaperenna.

The Wine
2008 Bishop will be known for its pronounced purity and intensity of fruit on release. The 2008 is more forward and lifted than the 2007, and the tannins marginally softer. There are rich, ripe, dark berry fruits with star anise on the palate. On the nose, aromas of liquorice and mocha intermingle with cassis and leather. Firm, velvety tannins from maturation in French and American oak beautifully balance opulent flavours on the palate.

A few of the shiraz parcels used for Anaperenna in previous vintages have been used in the 2008 Bishop cuvee. We chose not to make an Anaperenna in 2008, due to Cabernet grapes being heat affected. This means that in 2008, fruit from some of our oldest shiraz vines was used, allowing us to maintain the Bishop structure and intensity. Our old vines handled the drought better than the younger vines and their fruit was softer, rounder and more generous - the desired style for Bishop Shiraz.

Variety: 100% Shiraz
Region: Barossa Valley (Ebenezer sub region)
Age of vines: 80-120 years old
Vineyard yield: 1-2 tons per acre (2.4-4.8 tonnes per hectare)
Vinification: 1 1/2-2 Ton open fermenters, hand-plunged 2-3 times daily. Extended maceration gives good tannin development which means that the wine is soft and approachable early. 10-20% barrel fermentation for selected batches.
Oak: 90% French, 10% American
Age of barrels: 2-3 years
Time in barrel: 14 months
Alc/Vol: 15%
pH: 3.4
Total Acidity: 7 g/l
Residual Sugar: 1.2 g/l
Cellaring Potential: 10-12 years

2008 vintage report - Ebenezer, Barossa Valley

2008 in the Barossa will be remembered as a difficult year to manage due to a heatspike during vintage. Daily monitoring of fruit quality and flavour development was extremely important. Severel different parcels were harvested separately in short breaks before the main heat burst. With smart canopy management during the growing season we have a vintage, albeit small, that we are very proud of. The 2008 vintage shows great purity of fruit and firm but fine tannins, giving great structure and power to the wines.