Gemtree Wines has released two new Grenache wines in their Small Batch Collection which were made together, yet matured differently.

The certified organic, and practicing biodynamic, winery has released one Grenache matured with traditional oak practices, Grenache SBO, and another matured via concrete egg maturation, Grenache SBE.

The McLaren Vale winery, which received its organic certification in 2011 and has been practicing biodynamics since 2007, is owned and operated by vigneron Melissa Brown and husband and chief winemaker Mike Brown.

Chief winemaker Mike Brown says both of these wines started their journey to the bottle in exactly the same way, according to Mr Brown. The fruit was sourced from organically farmed, McLaren Vale vines planted in 1946.

Post-pressing, the Grenache was fermented before being split about 50/50 for maturation.

One parcel was sent to traditional oak barrels, while the other was racked into concrete eggs, where both parcels then matured in their separate vessels for a further six months.

“True to the principles of our small batch winemaking, we had no idea what the result of the concrete egg maturation would be!” Mr Brown said.

“Turned out, luckily for all of us, both batches were exceptional and very different. These are both wines destined for the dining table, but perhaps for different dishes and seasons.”

Mr Brown says these wines seek to “disrupt”; he says they are experimental and made from select parcels of organic and biodynamic fruit.

“Our Small Batch wines are an expression of the joy and curiosity of winemaking and our 2020 Small Batch Grenache wines are the perfect manifestation of our Small Batch philosophy,” Mr Brown said.

“2020 was a vintage where patience was required, the normal technical signs of harvest were not as reliable. We needed instead to trust our judgement through constantly tasting the berries in the vineyard to determine optimal flavour ripeness before harvest.

“In 2020, we made two Grenache Small Batch Wines, SBO (oak maturation) and SBE (concrete egg maturation).”

Mr Brown says the Small Batch SBE Grenache is “juicy with fresh berry flavours”, and it has a natural “tension and brightness and exceptional depth of flavour”.

“It is a red wine consumers can challenge their wine drinking conventions with. It can be enjoyed slightly chilled with robust flavoured seafood dishes,” he said.

“The Small Batch SBO Grenache is a darker and more brooding wine, still with the typical cherry flavours, but more earthy. This wine has grippier tannin with a perceptively dryer finish. It is a rich and contemplative wine.”

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