De Bortoli

Red Wine Day

Woodfired

The Woodfired wines have a true sense of place and an identity defined by their origins. Shiraz & Cabernet and the most recent addition, Grenache, from the ancient, dry soils of the Heathcote region in central Victoria.

They represent the unique geography, climate and growing conditions of this famous region, and their elemental, brooding personalities are the perfect compliment to the universal style of cooking as old as time itself.

History & Geography

The unique red soils are the defining characteristic of Heathcote though. Strangely, they are very good at holding water, so the small amount of rainfall the region receives stays in the soil. Small, concentrated grapes are the result, and they make rich, concentrated wines.

Heathcote wines are defined by their inky depth of colour, and deep, dark, complex fruit and intense flavours.

DE BORTOLI WOODFIRED HEATHCOTE GRENACHE 750ML

Intense medium colour red with purple edge. Ripe blueberry and dark cherry characters, cedarwood and violets, soft, mouth coating, balanced tannin, authentically Heathcote. Grenache is a great food wine for char-grilled cooking; think spicy chicken, green prawns or eggplant.

DE BORTOLI WOODFIRED HEATHCOTE CABERNET 750ML

Intense dark colour red with purple edge. Ripe blackberry and blueberry characters, cedarwood and liquorice. Soft, rich, mouth coating, balanced tannin, hints of classic Cabernet, authentically Heathcote.

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Bortoli Woodfired Heathcote Shiraz

750ML

This Woodfired Shiraz has deep red flavours with purple edge. Plump, dark fruits, fennel and olive spice, dark chocolate. Soft, rich, plump, balanced tannin, cured meats, wild spice, authentically Heathcote.

Winemaking

Winemaker Steve Webber has been making wines for almost half a century and has a special love of the Heathcote region. He describes what makes the Woodfired wines special and how he nurses them from grape to glass.

What do you taste in the Woodfired Wines?

Heathcote wines have a few unique flavour elements. There are hints of the Mediterranean shrubs called garigue that grow in the dry parts of those regions, subtle hints of fennel and licorice or star anise. The palate of Heathcote wines has a particular grittiness, result of both the fruit and the special tannin structure. You can even find the faintest suggestion of vintage port aromas and background notes of Violets.

When do you pick the grapes?

Picking is typically February. I think it’s a really unique region. The climate is tough and the summers are hot. But the soil is unique. It retains water and allows the grapes to ripen for a longer than expected time. We pick the fruit ripe at 15-15.5 baume and it can move to that level and beyond in a 24hr period, so the timing there is very very important.

Then what happens in the winery?

We do what we call 2 and 12, 12 tonnes of berries and two tonnes of whole bunches (which includes the stalks and stems). We don’t crush the fruit, we just let it start fermenting on its own with skins whole, doing what we call “pumping“ when you take the juice from the bottom and pump it back on top... and repeat....for 10-14 days. We can extract incredible colour and flavour but ensure that we’re gentle. We have to be gentle, we want to keep these tannins relaxed, we don’t want them to become too big.

Are the wines aged?

Yes. Definitely. These are big wines. They start out a little angry and we have to let them calm down. They are already so full of flavour that we don’t want too much oak flavour so we use only 10-15% new oak. The rest is old oak (2-3yr old barrels), mostly 225 - 500L barrels but we use some big 2,500L barrels as well. The barrels are a living thing. They breathe and along the way they help to soften the wine. Finally, after 9-12 months we are ready to bottle. The beauty of the Heathcote wine is that it has a naturally higher pH level than other wines that gives it that special softness and roundness.

Awards

Over time the Woodfired wines have won a host of awards.