Rolling Shiraz 2015

In the early 1980s people discovered the virtue of the Central Rangers. What would they be? You might rightly enquire. Well, political figures named Tony, Dave & Nick dawned in tight red, blue & yellow body suits mightily morphed their supposedly opposing parties into one giant amorphous blob of political apathy, intent on fighting the evils of Lord Zedd. That was the idea anyway but then there was some lying about uranium, some referendums and some student voters in Sheffield Hallam. After all that turmoil and well, incompetence the Central Rangers thought they better turn their hand to something else. They mighty morphed one more time and became the largest cool climate wine growing region in Australia. It appeared what the Central Rangers lacked in political aptitude they made up for in aiding Debbie Lauritz ripen the grapes for this incredible Shiraz; delivering a generous forest fruit flavoured palate with subtle spice and well-integrated use of oak.

It turns out the region is called Central Ranges not Central Rangers, please disregard all previous information.
No political figures were physically harmed in the making of this tasting note... Just their feelings.

In the early 1980's some astute and dedicated wine pioneers recognised the cool climate and ideal soils of the Orange region. Orange, along with the Central Ranges have become the largest cool climate region in Australia. The area, alongside Mudgee and Cowra, produces twice the amount of wine as the Hunter Valley.

The founders of what is now Cumulus were ambitious, planting a massive 500 hectares of vineyard and built a 10,000-tonne winery with storage capacity for 8 million litres of wine. In 2004, the company was renamed “Cumulus Estate Wines’, inspired by the local cloud formations of the area. In 2007, the Portuguese based, Berardo family joined them, bringing a wealth of knowledge and expertise.

Today, Cumulus Estate Wines is the largest producer of an emerging wine region, with 508 hectares under vine, classified as 48% Orange and 52% Central Ranges. The vineyard has at least ten different varietals – Shiraz, Cabernet, Merlot, Grenache, Mourvèdre, Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling. With mild summers and cold winters, good winter and spring rains aid vine development. As a member of entwine, they also practice excellent sustainable farming practices.