The 2020 Mickan Block Durif Shiraz is a bold, dark and brooding blend that showcases the complementary strengths of these two varieties.
Deeply coloured and intensely aromatic, it opens with blackberry, plum, cocoa and subtle earthy notes before unfolding into a rich, full-bodied palate.
Durif delivers structure and depth while Shiraz adds plush fruit and warmth, creating a wine that is powerful yet balanced, with fine, persistent tannins and a long, satisfying finish.
Sourced from the red-brown loam and chocolate clay soils of the Mickan Block, it was crafted through small-batch ferments with minimal intervention and matured for three years in seasoned French oak before twelve months in bottle.
One of our personal favourites, it was featured during Young Gun of Wine’s Vineyards of the Year trade tastings in 2024.
Dark, expressive and textural, this wine drinks beautifully now and will evolve through 2030, pairing well with slow-cooked brisket, barbecued ribs, chargrilled steak, lamb shoulder and robust aged cheeses.
Vineyard – Mickan Block: Red brown earth loam over red and chocolate clay
Winemaking – Small open ferment, cold soak, minimal intervention, short daily pump overs. 3 years in seasoned French Oak and 12 months in the bottle. 1,554 bottles produced.
Technical – Alcohol: 15.4% pH: 3.60 TA: 5.60 g/L
REVIEWS – 91 points (Erin Larkin – Robert Parker Wine Advocate)
“The 2020 Mickan Block Durif Shiraz is dark and black, with char, graphite, coal dust and dark chocolate. A spicy, rich wine, with density and weight, it rolls across the palate like heavy rain clouds across the horizon, it has movement and is baritone. It is in possession of that classic Durif character, or so I see it, of blue and black fruit and spice, petrichor and gravel, asphalt and flesh. Good Durif is both a little bony and quite fleshy at once. This contrast is important because too much of one throws the other out of balance. 15.4% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.”
