Whilst Shiraz might be the poster boy for the Barossa, we believe blending it with Grenache and Mataro produces the best drinking wines from this region. Thanks to our good mates the Riebke brothers and other Barossa growers whose families have stuck by these varieties for the past 100 years or more, we¡¯re privileged to have fruit from very old vines to make our GMS blends. In 2002, our first vintage, we made one wine¡­an unoaked GMS blend we called Joshua. With that wine selling out quickly, we decided to have a crack at releasing a second wine from the vintage, a different take on the original blend and aged in old seasoned oak for 12 months. Loosely interpreted, Avatar can mean ¡®transformation¡¯¡­so a pretty good moniker for a wine we fondly refer to as the older brother for our Josh¡¯.
The blend percentages for Avatar might change each vintage, but the recipe doesn¡¯t vary much¡­Grenache (about 50%) for spice and bright red fruits, Mataro (30%) for some savoury earthiness and depth¡­.Shiraz (20%) for plump plum and rich black fruit. The time in oak¡­and the choice of old seasoned oak¡­ensures it serves only as a seasoning to add complexity and savoury nuance. With vines this old, we want the fruit and earth to speak with the clearest voice.¡±