The first Karrawirra Cabernet was the 2008 vintage, we skipped the 2011, the quantity was tiny in 2012, only 80 cases of 2013, the following vintages were the best ever, we passed on the 2017 and are back with a tremendous 2018.
The source remains the same as the 2016 being the Schwarz Biscay Road property south of Tanunda.
For the Karrawirra style we pick riper grapes and since these arrive at the winery packed with flavour we do as little as possible with the winemaking. They are fermented in a gentle way, e.g. the grape skins are not aggressively worked, the wine and pressings are combined and the wine is left to mature in old French oak.
As we prefer bigger, fruitier styles than some wineries we also do not worry about the alcohol percentage, only that the wine be in balance.
The Barossa Valley has a long history with Cabernet though it’s not rated as highly as the Shiraz which is wrong. We made just under 100 cases.
