1998 Jasper Hill Georgia's Paddock Shiraz

The wines of Jasper Hill are highly regarded and sought after produced by Ron Laughton in Heathcote. Plum liquorice and blackberry in a swirl of savoury / spicy tannins and oak. With age they become more elegant and delicious.

Georgia’s Paddock: twelve hectares of Shiraz yielding about three tonnes per hectare (20hL per hectare). Three hectares of Riesling giving about three tonnes per hectare (20 hL per hectare). Both of these varieties were planted in 1975/76 with further small plantings completed after the vineyard was ravaged by bushfire in 1987. One hectare each of similarly low yielding Semillon planted in 1992, Nebbiolo planted in 1993, and Viognier planted in 2001.

All vineyards are planted on their own roots, to retain purity of style, rather than grafted on to Phylloxera-resistant American non-vinifera root stock.

The vines have a sunny, open, balanced canopy that keeps fungal diseases at bay and eliminates the need for summer pruning, leaf plucking and crop reduction. All picking and pruning is carried out by hand.

All vineyards are unirrigated and rely on natural rainfall only.

Both Emily’s and Georgia’s Paddocks are on elevated hillsides at an altitude of 320 metres (1000 feet) and are approximately 1 km apart. Emily’s Paddock has a NE aspect and shallower soil, while Georgia’s Paddock has a NW aspect and the classic deep soil.