For George Hanson, nothing is ever done “half-way”. This has always been the case for the way he makes wines at his winery, Seven Stones in Cawston. Extremely high quality wines are made from attention to minute details in the vineyard and the cellar, where barrels are selected by individual forests with different levels of toast to give the best qualities to each variety of wine.
So when the need for extra space in the winery arose, the only way to do it was with the same attention to detail and quality. Instead of simply adding onto the existing winery, Hanson’s stepson Colin Wilson designed an underground wine cave that is currently under construction. The caves should be ready by early summer, just in time for the Sip Sip Syrah event.
“It’s the release of our 2011 Syrah,” explains Hanson. The Syrah will be bottled in April of this year and officially released at Sip Sip Syrah, which will be the inaugural event for the new facility if it is completed on schedule. Samples tasted from the barrel after 14 months (see tasting notes below) yield an amazing constellation of aromas. “With our fruit, [14 months in barrel] is when I start to really see the evolution.”
Experience it for yourself when the Syrah 2011 is released this spring at Seven Stones Winery.
2011 Syrah 2011 Barrel sample tasting (14 months in barrel)
Aromas of leather, white pepper, liquorice, chocolate truffle, black berries, blueberries, graphite. Palate is velvety smooth and rich with an extremely long fruity finish.
~ Luke Whittall