Luke Lambert Syrah 2021

One of the most talented young winemakers in the Yarra Valley, Luke Lambert uses natural processes and hand-picked, single-vineyard grapes to achieve an organic complexity in his wine. Sourced from unique vineyards throughout the Yarra, Lambert's wines are typically prepared using old-fashioned methods. Wild fermentation, hand-plunging, long maceration, basket pressing and a lack of filtration all work together to capture each vine's natural idiosyncrasies. With all of the Yarra Valley to choose from, Lambert favours vineyards where the conditions are often challenging but the character is always rich - his pursuit of compelling terroir is something at which to marvel. The Denton Vineyard sits atop a hard granite plug. This is unusual in the Yarra, where sandstone and siltstone are usually inescapable, and lends a unique minerality to his Crudo Shiraz and famous Nebbiolo. The Tibooburra Vineyard in the southeastern corner of the Yarra offers one of the coolest available microclimates, and features predominantly black topsoil over yellow clay and a scattering of sandstone. The Jansz Vineyard and Rising Vineyard in St. Andrews are both extremely cool and rocky. These difficult growing conditions lead to a limited yield of small berries that are packed with intense, organic flavour - a flavour that Lambert is incredible at capturing.