Family Article
Noon Shiraz Reserve
Last edited on 10/16/2020 by LindsayM
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Grapes for the Reserve Shiraz have been sourced from the same vineyard (the 1.6 hectare ‘20 Rows’ block in Langhorne Creek owned by the Borrett family) since the first Reserve Shiraz in 1997. Earlier bottlings of this wine; 1993, 1992, 1991, 1990, 1989 and 1987 (when my father David was the winemaker) were labelled simply as Noon’s Traditional Red.
The Noon Reserve Shiraz is a full bodied, generously flavoured wine. If you usually prefer white wines or more elegant, light-medium bodied reds then this may not be the wine for you. It may be drunk young but will certainly reward cellaring.
Note that there was no 2008 or 2011 Reserve Shiraz produced.
Food matching suggestions
Choose richly flavoured dishes such as lamb shanks or Osso Bucco to accompany young vintages. As the Noon Reserve Shiraz matures, tannins mellow and complexity builds and it becomes a good partner for a simple but high quality beef T-Bone or aged rump steak.
It is a good idea to decant this wine at least 30 minutes prior to serving (the younger the wine the longer the time). Aeration will help release the wines aromas and flavours and any sediment formed during maturation can be left behind.
Varietal composition
100% Shiraz from the ‘20 Rows’ block in Langhorne Creek, South Australia.
Winemaking
Noon Reserve Shiraz is matured in small (300 litre) French and American oak barrels for 18 months. We use approximately 30-40% new oak for this wine, with the aim of adding complexity and structure without dominating the fruit flavour.
Each year we work closely with the Borrett family to choose the ideal harvest time. Fermentation takes place in our small open vats which are hand plunged to help extract the naturally abundant colour and tannins present in the grapes.
After fermentation is complete (typically 10 to 20 days) pressing is done by hand using small manual basket presses and care is taken not to extract too much bitterness or astringency by rough handling and over-pressing.
The wine is crushed, fermented, matured and bottled on our property.
Average Production
750 – 850 dozen. Older vineyards reflect the seasons more clearly and production can vary significantly, especially in years affected by drought.
The Vineyard
The 20 Rows Shiraz block was planted in 1962 on the Langhorne Creek flood plain, which is managed to receive late winter and early spring flood water from the Bremer River assisted by a series of channels and weirs. This is a special and unique terroir which has been producing wine this way since the mid 1800’s. The vineyard area of Langhorne Creek today has expanded well outside this original flood plain and the growing conditions in the new vineyards are quite different. One could make a good argument for the appellation Langhorne Creek to be used exclusively for the historic flood plain land. The ‘20 Rows’ vines are quite low yielding for the area at around 3-4 tons/acre. They are growing on their own roots as the region is free of phylloxera. The soil in this vineyard is a deep alluvial clay loam with an almost shimmering quality about it which produces small, black-coloured and perfectly formed Shiraz berries, packed with flavour.
The Noon Reserve Shiraz is a full bodied, generously flavoured wine. If you usually prefer white wines or more elegant, light-medium bodied reds then this may not be the wine for you. It may be drunk young but will certainly reward cellaring.
Note that there was no 2008 or 2011 Reserve Shiraz produced.
Food matching suggestions
Choose richly flavoured dishes such as lamb shanks or Osso Bucco to accompany young vintages. As the Noon Reserve Shiraz matures, tannins mellow and complexity builds and it becomes a good partner for a simple but high quality beef T-Bone or aged rump steak.
It is a good idea to decant this wine at least 30 minutes prior to serving (the younger the wine the longer the time). Aeration will help release the wines aromas and flavours and any sediment formed during maturation can be left behind.
Varietal composition
100% Shiraz from the ‘20 Rows’ block in Langhorne Creek, South Australia.
Winemaking
Noon Reserve Shiraz is matured in small (300 litre) French and American oak barrels for 18 months. We use approximately 30-40% new oak for this wine, with the aim of adding complexity and structure without dominating the fruit flavour.
Each year we work closely with the Borrett family to choose the ideal harvest time. Fermentation takes place in our small open vats which are hand plunged to help extract the naturally abundant colour and tannins present in the grapes.
After fermentation is complete (typically 10 to 20 days) pressing is done by hand using small manual basket presses and care is taken not to extract too much bitterness or astringency by rough handling and over-pressing.
The wine is crushed, fermented, matured and bottled on our property.
Average Production
750 – 850 dozen. Older vineyards reflect the seasons more clearly and production can vary significantly, especially in years affected by drought.
The Vineyard
The 20 Rows Shiraz block was planted in 1962 on the Langhorne Creek flood plain, which is managed to receive late winter and early spring flood water from the Bremer River assisted by a series of channels and weirs. This is a special and unique terroir which has been producing wine this way since the mid 1800’s. The vineyard area of Langhorne Creek today has expanded well outside this original flood plain and the growing conditions in the new vineyards are quite different. One could make a good argument for the appellation Langhorne Creek to be used exclusively for the historic flood plain land. The ‘20 Rows’ vines are quite low yielding for the area at around 3-4 tons/acre. They are growing on their own roots as the region is free of phylloxera. The soil in this vineyard is a deep alluvial clay loam with an almost shimmering quality about it which produces small, black-coloured and perfectly formed Shiraz berries, packed with flavour.