2021 Château Acid Rosato
WINEMAKER: Charlie O'Brien & Simon Jones
REGION: Central Ranges, NSW
VARIETAL: Syrah
VITICULTURE: Certified Organic/Biodynamic
100% Syrah, infusion of whole bunches and juice for 3 weeks then pressed back to tank. Bottled by gravity with no additions. 2021 was a welcome season for us, cool and wet, allowing us to pick things perfectly ripe in March after good hang time while still keeping pH and alcohol relatively low (11.7% alcohol, 3.57 pH in the finished wine). Ferments were steady and the élévage was the most hands off it could be, we left this wine in tank untouched for 8 months, very little reduction and everything in it's place.
The vineyard (where all of our wines have been grown and made to date) is deep in the Central Ranges of NSW, between Orange and Cowra. We were very lucky in 2016 to meet the beautiful and forward-thinking Statham family, who came from winegrowers in the Beaujolais, established a commune of organic orchards and farms along a shared water source, the Belubula River in 1997. On a north facing sandy granite slope at about ~400m asl, Sam and Simone immediately began applying their permaculture and polyculture philosophies, planting figs, olives, stonefruits and about 10HA of grapes. They have been farming with biodynamics and Certified Organic since planting in 1997.
Charlie and Simon started Château Acid in 2017 with a tiny run of 650 bottles. Lucky for us, they make a little more now. Zero adds natty from the Central Ranges. Always on point. We're big fans.