Angove Organic Merlot 2020 (Australia)

Angove Organic Merlot 2020 (Australia)Subtle oak Plum Raspberry Dark red fruits Striking dark ruby red. Raspberry and plum characters abound. An intriguing palate of dark red fruits is complemented by subtle use of oak providing extra depth of character. The grapes for this wine were sourced from Angoves own Nanya Organic vineyard located near the township of Paringa. The soil is a relatively shallow red sandy loam over limestone, on top of a cliff overlooking the picturesque Murray

• Subtle oak
• Plum
• Raspberry
• Dark red fruits

Striking dark ruby red. Raspberry and plum characters abound. An intriguing palate of dark red fruits is complemented by subtle use of oak providing extra depth of character.

The grapes for this wine were sourced from Angove’s own Nanya Organic vineyard located near the township of Paringa. The soil is a relatively shallow red sandy loam over limestone, on top of a cliff overlooking the picturesque Murray River. The vines are mostly single cordon lower yielding vines, which the winemakers have noticed to be quite resilient in adverse conditions. Whether it is due to the organic practices being used or the site itself, the vineyard produces rich textural wines.

2020 was a challenging vintage on many fronts. Frosts were followed by windy conditions during flowering and then a hailstorm that ripped through the region causing signifi cant damage in early November just as the vines were hitting their prime ripening period. Thankfully, the Angove Organic Vineyard was spared much of the destruction that occurred elsewhere but yields were still signifi cantly down. Stable, dry conditions occurred from December onwards keeping disease pressure under control and with good canopy management the vines were able to ripen their precious cargo to perfection with harvest beginning in late February and continuing to early March. Whilst yields were signifi cantly down, 2020 will be remembered as a vintage of extremely good quality.

The grapes for this wine were picked at night to make sure that they were as cool as possible. Crushed to ‘sweeparm’ and rotary fermenters the grapes were then allowed to macerate for 2 days before inoculation and fermentation. The wine was pressed off skins 7 days later and allowed to go through the second malolactic fermentation, with then had minimal handling prior to filtration for bottling.

Food Pairing: A pot roast with horseradish mashed potatoes or vegetarian lasagne.