Henschke Tappa Pass Shiraz 2014

The Barossa has a core of traditional growers of Lutheran descent dating back five generations, staunchly continuing the traditions of their forebears. Occasionally, one or two parcels of fruit of overwhelming quality come over the weighbridge; this is such an example. Up to 70 year old, low-yielding vines are growing in low-fertility Neoproterozoic soils more than 542 million years old, ranging from terra rossa to red-brown earths.

The 2014 moon cycles put Easter quite late in the season and so the expectation of a late harvest prevailed until South Australia experienced its record number of heat days over 40C in January, culminating in the worst bushfire in Eden Valley in living memory. This ended in the wettest February in 44 years, with between 115 and 150mm of rain, all in 48 hours. Fortunately, Eden Valley and the Adelaide Hills were still in veraison, which allowed the quenching rain to rebalance the fruit, particularly in the older dry-grown vineyards. The yields appeared depressingly minuscule, due to a severe black frost in spring and cold windy weather during flowering in early December. Early picks of semillon and shiraz after the heat wave were in response to vine stress. The change to mild autumnal weather in late February after the rains allowed for a focus on other early vintage varieties, riesling in Eden Valley and pinot noir at Lenswood. Mild weather with cold dewy mornings and windy days prevailed. Disease pressure increased as March became colder and wetter, which seemed to change to a winter pattern after the equinox. It was indeed a late vintage and also resulted in one of the longest. The picking of Eden Valley cabernet and Lenswood merlot brought the season to a close at the beginning of May, where skilled vineyard teams played a critical role by hand selecting and picking the best quality fruit during the onset of rain and cold wintery weather. In summary, a challenging season with excellent quality but very low yields.