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| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Drinking window: Drink between 2019 and 2025 (based on 131 user opinions) |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 90 pts. and median of 91 pts. in 3 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by Burgundynick on 5/23/2020 & rated 91 points: A red and black, not overly, fruity nose, with some oak and peppery spice in the background. Palate has lots of smooth tannins, with some more red and black juicy fruits and a nice balance of acidity and well judged oak. A little restrained actually and a delight to drink, in fact really easy to drink. Definitely worth seeking out and thanks to @harrogatewines for the gift it was delicious, for all this in Hgate, sorry Andy hasn't any left and, sadly, doesn't stock it anymore. Worth seeking out, though to #giveanewwineago 91 points (983 views) |
| Rockford Producer Website
Winery Note:
I was born into a family of grape growers and grew up in vineyards and wineries, where I inherited a great respect for the pioneer Australian wine trade. All that I’ve experienced is reflected in the Rockford winemaking principles; Quality winemaking is a skilled craft that consumes a very large part of one’s life, so it must give you joy. That joy is extended if the maker can sell the wine directly to those who drink it for their pleasure.
My grandparents on both sides and also my parents were grape growers, so my childhood was spent in their vineyards. My parents moved to North Eastern Victoria where my Father managed a vineyard for Australia’s then largest family winemakers, Seppelts. In 1965 I followed a natural path and started as a trainee winemaker at Seppelt’s Rutherglen winery.
It was a wonderful apprenticeship in the old, ordered, slow and gentle Australian wine trade. The wines I drank, the winemakers from previous generations with whom I associated and everything I absorbed in that period had a major influence on the way Rockford is today. Although I’ve spent all my life in vineyards and wineries, the pleasure I derive from walking through rows of vines or casks filled with wine has not diminished.
In 1971 I purchased an 1850’s stone settler’s cottage and outbuildings on five acres of land in the village of Krondorf, which sits in the shadow of the Barossa Ranges, in the heart of the Barossa Valley. The courtyard shaped winery which grew from this was built in the same style and from the same materials as the original buildings.
The vintage shed is equipped with plant from the pioneer era – I collected these valuable pieces when they were discarded by other Australian wineries as they modernised. This allows Rockford to carry on the traditional Australian winemaking techniques, but more importantly the winery is the same scale, age and pace as our growers’ vineyards.
To me the winery is not just a building but a large piece of sculpture with Barossa wine running through its veins, hopefully when you walk into the courtyard you’ll instantly feel a sense of all that it represents.
Wine is crafted, not created. The skill is to capture and enhance the fleeting flavours that grapes give from their variety and extract from the earth, then bottle these as a living record of the vintage they represent.
Rockford wines are made from established Barossa varieties which form an important part of our winemaking heritage, in a style that best reflects the vineyards, the winemaker’s attitude and the climate in which we live.
I have always lived in and feel most comfortable with the warm Mediterranean climate of the Barossa where grapes ripen easily. My preference is to make the wine by hand with traditional methods, attitudes and equipment to produce elegant but rich, earthy, soft, generous wines that will age - the kind that I drank in my youth.
- Robert O'CallaghanRockford Moppa SpringsFrom the 2016 back label
Moppa Springs Barossa Valley
Moppa Springs ,Ebeneezer and Kalimna are some of the driest areas in the Barossa where green vines grow on one side of the fence in ripened wheat on the other.
This hard country is cold, wet and frosty during pruning then hot dry and dusty during harvest; The kind of tough conditions that ensure Grenache , Shiraz and Mataro give their best . These varieties and the family who grow them earned the right to represent the Barossa in this blend by surviving for more than 150 years when others could not.
Like all Rockford reds, the hand-picked grapes for this wine are de-stemmed through our 1880’s Bagshaw crusher, open fermented and then gently basket pressed. All components are aged separately in an array of seasoned American and French oak hogsheads and large vats to allow the tannins to soften and colours and flavours to consolidate.
Bottle ageing the wine for 2 to 3 years will give it a chance to clearly show it’s Barossa birthright
Grenache 50% based with Mataro 30% and Shiraz 10%Red Rhone Blend Read about the different grapes used to produce red and white Rhone wines
On CellarTracker, Red Rhone Blend is the term for a wine consisting of two or more of the traditional 13 Southern Rhone grape varieties. Typically it's the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre or Cinsault grapes, but can also contain the Muscardin, Counoise, Clairette, Bourboulenc, Picpoul, Roussanne, Terret Noir, Picardan or Vaccarese grapes.
A 'food' wine. Lacking pretension and intended for local consumption with local cuisine. Lacks the 'high' notes on a Bordeaux, more earthy and sharper so often a better partner to meat dishes with a sauce. Australia Wine Australia (Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation) | Australian Wines (Wikipedia)South Australia South Australian Wine Industry Association | South Australian Wines (Wikipedia)Barossa Barossa Wine (South Australian Tourism Commission)Barossa Valley Barossa Valley |
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