Kilikanoon Baudinet Grenache Shiraz Mataro 2019

Region: Clare Valley
Proprieter: Kevin Mitchell
Established: 1997
Address:
Penna Lane
Penwortham via Clare
South Australia, 5453

Kevin purchased Kilikanoon in 1997 after having worked for such companies as Krondorf, d'Arenberg, Kingston Estate, Orlando, BRL Hardy, Kendal Jackson, and in the USA, Willamette Valley.

With over 500 hectares of vines throughout South Australia, founder and Senior Winemaker Kevin Mitchell has a diverse range of prime harvests to draw from. This has led to a diverse range of award-winning wines for this acclaimed winery. Since their first release in 1998, the Kilikanoon wines have gained in their popularity.

Mourvèdre, Mataró, or Monastrell is variety of wine grape used to make both strong, dark red wines and rosés. It is an international variety grown in many regions around the world.

In Australia

There are around 12 square kilometres of Mourvèdre in Australia, with the most significant plantings in South Australia and New South Wales. It is usually found in Rhone-style GSM blends of Grenache, Shiraz, Mourvèdre. It has also found its way into Australian fortified wines.

Characteristics

Mourvèdre produces tannic wines that can be high in alcohol, and is most successful in Rhone-style blends. It has a particular affinity for Grenache, softening it and giving it structure. Its taste varies greatly according to area, but often has a wild, gamey or earthy flavour, with soft red fruit flavours.

130km north of Adelaide (and west of the Barossa), the Clare Valley sits within a high-altitude pocket granting the vineyards cool to cold nights with long, warm to hot summer days. This cooler climate grants thin-skinned (and indeed temperamental) grapes like rieslings a perfect climate in which to mature slowly without risk of mould during the harvest season. The resulting wines are perfumed, complex, softly flavoured yet powerful.

There are several sub-regions in the 35km stretch of valley, pocketed with varying soils, altitudes and climates. West-facing, high-altitude slopes benefit from drying afternoon sun in summer, producing some of the regions best vintages. The vines are planted from 400 to 500 metres (1,300 to 1,600 ft). The higher altitude, compared to other wine regions in South Australia, ensures cool nights even during the heat of summer allowing the fruit to ripen more evenly and slowly. Soil is a mix of red to brown-grey over basement rock.

History