2011 Sweet White Semillon Fortified 500ml

Dad (PL) always maintained that Barossa Madiera Clone Semillon made one of the best fortified wines going... the 2011 Sweet White Semillon Fortified is as good of an argument for the affirmative I think you could find!

 Six Bottle Case $300.00 | Dozen Price $570.00

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Production:

2011 Barossa Valley Floor Semillon Grapes picked and fortified to 16.5% ABV then aged in Large Format vats for 13 years before bottling

Colour:

Deep honeyed gold with great brightness and clarity displaying a hint of olive on the meniscus

Nose:

Wonderful lifted honeyed toffee notes of cashews and nutty rancio complexity with lifted ripe fig and poached pears 

Palate:

Slurpy Silky Honeyed Dates and Figs balanced by a lovely line of refreshing lemon curd acidity... just enough to delight without detracting from the indulgent richness and length of this decadent slurp

Philosophy:

In 2011, it was one of those years that many would like to forget. We had a Hot Wet Summer that segued into a warm wet Autumn. The result was… Challenging from a viticultural and winemaking perspective. We put in the hard yards and were rewarded with some absolute crackers that have not only stood the test of time but also surpassed all expectations all these years later. One of the choices that was not only a no brainer, but to be honest was a ‘sure thing’ was to go big and go long on the excess of Semillon grown that year, whack a heap of spirit in it, chuck it into big format Old Fortified Vats in a tin shed and basically not think about it for a dozen years or so. In the Lehmann Family, one of the unicorns of the cellar was a ‘Sweet White Show’ Fortified Semillon that Dad blended together in 1972. Legend has it (Marg) that dad was drunk for a month on this nectar of the gods, so impressed was he with the quality and his need to show it to all and sundry… for me, the need to get some stocks down that could possibly replicate this awesome tipple was a passion project worth having a crack. So, whilst the blend still has a long road to travel before it reaches those legendary heights of age and holyfuckery, as a 13 year old tipple it pretty damn good
Cheers and Enjoy!

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