Tasting Notes

About 30% of the 2009 Chardonnay was matured in new oak but only for a brief couple of months. This fresh, clean, medium-bodied style gives a moderate intensity of apple and peach aromas with some poached pears. Very crisp and citrusy in the mouth, it has a good long finish. Drink it now through 2012.

Although the property was purchased by their grandfather, brothers Al and Cameron Ashmead are really the second generation of Ashmeads at the Elderton helm since it was their parents Neil and Lorraine that rose to the challenge of developing this into one of the Barossa’s top wineries. The first Ashmead vintage was in 1982. The jewel here is the 8 acre estate vineyard planted in 1894 by Samuel Elderton Tolley (one of the largest 100+ year old vineyards on the planet) that produces the Command Shiraz, with the 66 year old Ashmead Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard also giving exceptional fruit. Since 2003 they’ve had their own winery and now produce around 40-50000 cases per year with winemaker Richard Langford adeptly forging a range of predominately red wines from the good value end right up to the sought-after collectibles. (Lisa Perrotti-Brown)

Technical Notes

• Technical Data:
• Alcohol: 11.5% by vol.
• Titratable Acidity: 6.84 g/l
• Residual Sugar: 0.43 g/l
• PH: 3.17

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Estate Profile

Elderton Wines is a small, family-owned winery, situated in the heart of Australia's Barossa Valley, that has shot to acclaim producing some of the world's most highly regarded shiraz and cabernet sauvignon.

Neil and Lorraine Ashmead purchased the original elderton Homestead located at Nuriootpa in the Barossa Valley, in 1979, after returning home from several years working in saudi arabia . Neil, a civil engineer along with lorraine, had no previous experience in the wine industry, but soon grew a passion for the region and an enthusiasm to rescue the amazing old vines that surrounded the property.
3 years were tirelessly spent nurturing the property back into health following many years of neglect, with the first vintage, a 1982 Shiraz, released in 1983.

The estate is home to 72 acres of Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, with plantings dating back to 1904. It is considered one of the remaining original 'Barossa Gardens', with the name 'Elderton' deriving from the original vineyard owner - Samuel Elderton Tolley.

Now, the second generation of the Ashmead family, brothers Cameron and Allister, run the winery day to day and are passionate about producing wines that are balanced, varietally correct and classic in nature.

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