Elephant Hill Icon Airavata Syrah 2015| Ewineasia.com

The wine is made with Syrah from our Gimblett Gravels vineyard (Mass Selection). There were two hand-picks across two blocks in Gimblett vineyard. The fruit was cold-soaked for four days and fermented with cultured yeast, delestage twice daily until 10 brix then sealed with gentle cap-wetting once daily. The warm fermentations were hand plunged and took 14 to 21 days before being drained and then vinified in 52% new French oak with the remainder in older barrels. No pressings went into the wine. The wine then spent 24 months in oak with no racking of the barrels and 1 months in stainless steel tank. It was bottled with very minimal filtration and no fining. The wine was bottled on 27th March 2019.

The 2015 Airavata has great depth and complexity showing plum, black cherries, spice and pepper with further savoury olive tapenade and bay leaf characters. The acidity, oak and fine, ripe tannins combine to give a Syrah that will improve and age very well for many years.

“This is profound and compelling; the superbly expressed bouquet shows creme de cassis, Black Doris plum, vanilla, spicy oak and cocoa characters with hints of dried herb and mixed spice. The palate delivers outstanding concentration and depth, wonderfully complemented by layers of rich texture and polished tannins, finishing impressively long and engaging.”