Winemaker Notes
Pale gold, bright and clear in appearance. Aromas of allspice, rose water, bath salts and geranium. Lifted yet gentle. A clean, clear bright front palate, with stirring and bracing acidity through the mid to the back palate. A textual grip grabs your throat in the after-taste, which is long and dry. For the most part, this white wine has rain water quality, highlighted by a mineral salt and savory fruit flavors - green apple, green herbs, and citrus foliage.
This Roussanne's palate is a good match for spicy, lively food, or fatty, crumbly country terrines. An uplifting and wonderfully surprising wine.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Plenty of peach and honeysuckle here, as well as beeswax notes and light ripe tropical fruit. Good intensity all round with flavors of ripe melon, young peaches and pears. Chalky phenolic grip to close. Drink now.
Full and silky in body but also charmingly crisp, Roussanne is native to the Rhône Valley of France. It is responsible for some of the finest Northern Rhône white wines. Roussanne adds richness and acidity to Marsanne’s soft, fruitiness, making age worthy and highly respected whites. Somm Secret—Roussanne takes its name from the French word, roux, meaning rouge or red because of the berry’s pink glow. In California, virtually all of the 339 acres of Roussanne come from true clones brought over by Tablas Creek and John Alban.
Historically and presently the most important wine-producing region of Australia, the Barossa Valley is set in the Barossa zone of South Australia, where more than half of the country’s wine is made. Because the climate is very hot and dry, vineyard managers work diligently to ensure grapes reach the perfect levels of phenolic ripeness.
The intense heat is ideal for plush, bold reds, particularly Shiraz on its own or Rhône Blends. Often Shiraz and Cabernet partner up for plump and powerful reds.
While much less prevalent, light-skinned varieties such as Riesling, Viognier or Semillon produce vibrant Barossa Valley whites.
Most of Australia’s largest wine producers are based here and Shiraz plantings date back as far as the 1850s or before. Many of them are dry farmed and bush trained, still offering less than one ton per acre of inky, intense, purple juice.