Tatiarra, in five vintages has established a formidable reputation as one of Australia's great Shiraz producers. The success did not happen by chance, and at its core is the extraordinary terroir that the vineyards are planted on. Tatiarra was founded by Bill Hepburn, & re-established by the 'Old Man' and the late Bill Spring, who then gathered around them a group of shareholders whose obsession in their own businesses was with perfection. Tatiarra then sought to find the districts top viticulturists in Ian Rathjens and Bob Wilson and teamed them up with two of the country's best winemakers, Ben Riggs and Peter Flewellyn.
This formidable wine has become an International wine icon, and demand exceeds supply many times over. Stylistically, past vintages have been compared with great vintages of Penfolds Grange.
Caravan of Dreams takes its name from the aspirations of the vineyard's founder, Bill Hepburn, who in the early 1990's planted the original Tatiarra block consisting of ten acres of Shiraz vines. The early years of preparing the soil and planting the vineyard were difficult, with the only accommodation on the site being a caravan and a 'thunderbox'. However, when the cold winters in the caravan proved to be a strain on his health Bill Hepburn passed the dream onto Tatiarra. The result is this extraordinary wine. Three pressings are made from the grape skins after the free run juice is allocated for the Cambrian Shiraz. Great care must be taken to ensure that excess tannins and phenolics don't overcome the fruit flavour. The wine is matured in new American oak casks for approximately 12 months.
What Makes The Trademark Shiraz So Special?
The Shiraz from Heathcote, which like the top Shiraz from McLaren Vale has incredibly inky black colour, the underlying difference between the two regions is fruit flavour and palate structure. The wines of McLaren Vale tend to be more voluptuous, almost pure fruit bombs but do not have the finesse and tannin structure that the wines from Heathcote deliver. The pure concentration of the black pepper and red berry flavours of Heathcote compliment the rich character of the McLaren Vale. The result of Ben's dream is Trademark Shiraz.
The Cambrian Shiraz represents a wonderful expression of the Tatiarra Vineyard's terroir and is a classic, big Heathcote Shiraz. The grapes for this wine are generally cropped at very low yields between 1.5-2 tonnes per acre, producing a wine of immense power and concentration. The wine is matured in predominately new French and American oak casks for approximately 12 months.
Why not try them all in our mixed case?