Seppelt St. Peters Grampians Shiraz 2019

The term St. Peters (curiously spelt without an apostrophe) refers to the St. Peters shiraz clone which remains one of the great mysteries of Australian wine. Is it originally sourced from pre-phylloxera vines in Europe via the Busby Collection, which was the foundation of the Australian wine industry? Some think it is. Is it related to the Best’s clone introduced by Joseph Best in the 1860s? Maybe. Either way, the individual and aromatic beauty of the St. Peters shiraz clone is quite special and unique. And accordingly, St Peters Shiraz is the Seppelt flagship.

The 2019 vintage is a wine of some poise and grace. It has a quiet power and shows admirable winemaking restraint, especially in the oak department. This hasn’t always been the case in the past. Interestingly, the oak treatment here mimics the oak regime for the Arrawatta Hill Shiraz. Indeed, that vineyard contributed 55% of the fruit for this wine (the rest is sourced from the Bass block side of the Great Western Vineyard).

Laden with ripe, warm black berried fruits, plums, dark chocolate and earthy spice, St. Peters shines with great intensity. Ripe tannins and fine-trimmed oak compliment. And that hint of bay leaf? Well, that’s the Grampians’ signature and it closes the wine beautifully. A keeper . . . if you can.