Chris Ringland, Doris Block, Barossa Shiraz, Barossa Valley, Australia ***On Allocation***, 2018

Producer Profile

Chris Ringland came from humble beginnings. Growing up in Auckland, in 1974 he decided to have a go at home winemaking after finding an old recipe book, and together with some schoolmates harvested his neighbours’ backyard vines.

Interested in learning more about the science and history of winemaking, in 1977 he applied to the university of Adelaide and was accepted on the oenology degree course at Roseworthy College. After graduating, Chris returned to New Zealand for a few vintages before travelling to California to gain more experience. Working for Rockford Wines in Barossa Valley for 18 vintages, he had the opportunity to purchase his own vineyard. Chris had already established a winemaking project, Three Rivers Shiraz, in 1989, utilising parcels of fruit purchased from various growers, In 1995 he was able to continue with Shiraz harvested from the 100-year-old vines on his Stone Chimney Creek property, high in the Barossa Ranges of Eden Valley. At this point he changed the name from Three Rivers to Chris Ringland Shiraz, and with the release of the 1998 vintage Chris Ringland Winery was born.

Viticulture

The Southern, North-East facing hillside is located in the Eden Valley. It is a very sheltered site, well protected from Southerly storms. The underlying soils are the result of weathered rock from the Paleozoic age, some 500-250 million years ago and the vines are pre-phylloxera. The old vine roots extend deep into the underlying decomposed podzolic clay, which stores moisture during the Summer Months, eliminating the need for irrigation. The aim is to manage the vines sustainably, doing as little to disturb the soils as possible, pruning hard and feeding them gently with a spray of natural nutrients. As soon as the grapes begin to colour, the entire vineyard is covered with bird net, to prevent damage to the fruit and to enable it to achieve full ripeness in pristine condition.

Tasting Note

Vigneron Adrian Hoffmann and winemaker Chris Ringland have been working together for more than 25 years to develop the Hoffmann Vineyard signature labels; Reservation Shiraz, North Barossa Shiraz, Dimchurch Shiraz and Hoffmann Vineyard Shiraz. Doris Block is an opportunity to portray the complexity and unique characteristics of the vintage. Adrian and Chris taste the barrels to classify the wines and every now and then we’ll decide to bottle one of these special lots as a stand alone offering.