Our Wines - 2009 Divine Grenache
Divine
The Wine
Medium cherry red in colour with expressive, vibrant fruit aromas of morello cherry, plum and macerated strawberries with a touch of higher-toned raspberry lift. There are hints of fruit-cake spice, red licorice, gingerbread and vanilla bean with some creamy notes adding complexity.
On the palate the 2009 Divine Grenache shows excellent fruit purity and texture with creamy red plum, cherry and raspberry fruits coming to the fore. Again an expressive mid-palate showing hints of baking spice, vanilla, licorice and mocha mesh seamlessly with the judicious French oak characters as the wine flows to a finish that shows great persistence, ripe, super-fine tannins and a seam of balanced, bright acidity.
Drink now or cellar for 8-10 years.
The Winemaking
Fermented on skins in an open fermenter for 13 days and then gently basket pressed, this small parcel of wine was then transferred to 10 % new and 90% old French(100%) fine grain hogsheads for 24 months maturation.
Once matured the wine was bottled unfiltered and then spent 12 months maturing in bottle in our warehouse prior to release.
Bottled – March 7th 2011
Alc -14.9%
pH – 3.44
The Vineyard
The grapes were grown on the out skirts of Greenock, home of some of the most extraordinary grapes. These gnarly old bush vines were planted in the 1880’s in sandy loam topsoil over light clay.
Cropped at 1.0 tonnes per acre, the vineyard was hand picked on April 4th when optimum flavours and balance were achieved in the grape. Only selected bunches from each vine were selected for this wine.
- Julian Coldrey - Full Pour
5 Jan 2012
I think of Yelland & Papps of something of a Grenache specialist, something that isn't necessarily reflected in its portfolio of wines. Indeed, all the usual red suspects are equally represented; the reason why I associate this variety with this producer is that I feel there is a special synergy between the two.
This reserve-level wine is a great case in point. As significant as is the companion Shiraz, this is quite a different wine in the glass, more fruit-focused and hedonistic. The oak intrudes at first, throwing coffee grounds into your face as you smell the wine, but (unlike with the Shiraz) these notes develop quickly and fold back into an aroma profile that is lusciously typical: red fruits, a medicinal note, some confection. The curse of cheap Grenache can be an overly sweet fruit character, akin to boiled lollies and, for me, quite unattractive. While this wine hints at that character, it escapes completely its destructive side, expressing an altogether denser, though still bright, set of flavours.
The palate's structure and mouthfeel are notable. There's a sense of freshness here, thanks in part to an acid line that is firm and textural (though somewhat disconnected at this stage). Tannins are soft and quite plush, seeming to disappear into the density of the wine's mouthfeel at some points. That's not a bad thing; this is a big wine in the mouth, rounded and smooth, and I like how the tannins simply add stuffing rather than create contrast. Flavours are again utterly typical and gorgeously delicious.
I guess when you have 130 year old vines to play with, it makes sense to highlight what they bring by way of fruit and structure, rather than to smother the fruit with winemaking artifice. Not minimal intervention so much as a sensitivity to what makes this particular wine special. Stylistically, this probably represents what Australia is often criticised for making, but there's a legitimacy to these fruit-driven Barossa wines, especially when the fruit is clearly this good. I liked it a lot.
Yelland & Papps
Price: $A75
Closure: Stelvin
Source: Sample
Posted by Julian on Thursday, January 5, 2012 at 1:20 AM - 4 stars + - Red - Red To Brown
Saturday, March 3, 2012
2009 Yelland & Papps Divine Grenache (Barossa Valley)
I showed this to a mate who likes his wine but is not especially knowledgeable and generally drinks sub $20 wine (probably represents the typical wine consumer when you think about it). Upon trying a glass of this, he declared that it was the best wine he had ever had (he wasn’t aware of the price when he made that comment). A few nights later I showed him the 2010 Cirillo Vincent Grenache, a far cheaper yet also very good Grenache, which he also really enjoyed. Could well-made Grenache become a more popular drink with the punters? From a taste and drinkability perspective I don’t see why not. It’s more an image/perception issue at present (or lack thereof) that arguably holds grenache back from being more broadly consumed.
I love the intent and detail behind this wine. Hand sorted fruit off a vineyard in the Greenock sub-region that was planted in the 1880's. The fruit was cropped at 1.0 tonnes per acre. For the winemaking I’ll quote the winery
Fermented on skins in an open fermenter for 13 days and then gently basket pressed, this small parcel of wine was then transferred to 10 % new and 90% old French(100%) fine grain hogsheads for 24 months maturation. Once matured the wine was bottled unfiltered and then spent 12 months maturing in bottle.
It is an expensive wine, but the above provides context and to my mind, justification for that cost.
Before the actual tasting note, I can’t emphasise enough how important it is to drink this wine, or any Grenache, or indeed most red wine at wine “room temperature”, which is to say 16-18 degrees, and not Australian summer room temperature. It made a marked difference with this wine, and has done so with many wines I have looked at (pop your red wine in the fridge for 20-30 minutes in the middle of summer).
Having tasted this over a few days the thing that stayed with me was this wine’s texture. It combines the juicy joy that is grenache, with a serious structure, and a lovely earthy texture that marks it out from many of its peers. Berry fruit, spice, and a hint of creamy oak are in the mix, but in some ways the wine is unsurprisingly a bit closed at present. There’s a latent complexity here though, and given a few more years in the cellar i think this wine will really sing. A nice persistance of flavour finishes the wine off nicely. 4 Stars +
Rated:
+
ABV: 14.9%
RRP: $75
Closure: Screwcap
Website: http://www.yellandandpapps.com/
Red
Posted by Red at 8:43 PM 0 comments - 93 points - Stuart Robinson - The Vinsomniac
The Vinsomniac
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Yelland & Papps Divine Grenache 2009
Australia has fantastic old vine resources. Certainly amongst Grenache, Shiraz, Cabernet and Mataro (see my note on the Y&P Dvine Mataro here) it can lay claim to having the oldest vines of the type in the world.
So, this example, from vines 130 years of age, has been shown the respect due to it. The fruit has been allowed to shine, 'fruity' is often seen as a pejorative when it comes to Australian wine - and big thanks to a well regarded wine writer for that thought - yet when it comes to fruit of this calibre, it would be an insult to do anything else but let it sing.
Only 700 produced, spends 24 months in 100% French oak - 10% of which is new - thirteen days on skins, bottled unfiltered, and then spends 12 months in bottle. Quite simply: divine.
Some detection of oak on initial viewing, and along with a hint of Grenache's boiled lolly, that soon dissipates with time in glass. In the mouth, the wine presents itself as one of substance: smooth, viscous, a good mouth-feel, black-fruited and somewhat tarry. Depth, intensity, and complexity.
Tannins on the finish are soft and plush - not that the varietal is noted for its tannin - and the depth carries through and continues to the wines not inconsiderable conclusion. 93 - Excellent
Source: Sample
Price: $75
Alcohol: 14.5%
Closure: Screwcap
Website: http://yellandandpapps.com/
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Posted by Stu. at 14:26