Aroma: The wine has a complex nose displaying fresh and vibrant stone fruits – white peach and nectarine with a minerally edge. The fruit flavours are complemented by subtle creamy and nutty notes from time in barrel.
Palate: The palate is fresh and vibrant displaying pure white peach, nectarine and lychee fruit flavours accompanied by creamy cashew nut oak derived through the oak maturation process. The palate has a long finish displaying fine fruit flavours.
Vintage Conditions: Vintage 2012 is described as excellent by all winemakers in Coonawarra. Good winter rains provided a full soil moisture profile giving an optimal early start to the season; no frost and regular but small rainfall maintained the good start. Flowering commenced in October with milder and windier conditions leading to lower fruit set and therefore lower cropping levels. Veraison (berry colouring and softening) commenced in late January; conditions were very dry and warmer than average leading to reasonably rapid berry development. Harvest of white varieties began in mid - February, several weeks ahead of average with very good flavours and optimal sugar to acid ratios.
Vinification and Maturation: Fruit was harvested in the cool hours of the early morning and immediately pressed to conserve the fruits delicate flavours with only the high quality free run juice portion being utilised to make this wine. After 48hrs of cold settling then racking to clarify the juice, fermentation was initiated in stainless steel tanks. After partially fermenting, the juice was then transferred to fine grained French oak barrels (30% new) to complete fermentation. The wine was kept on yeast lees and matured in barrel for a total of 9 months. Fortnightly stirring of the lees was conducted to give the wine a creamy texture and flavour. The barrels were individually assessed and then blended to produce the final wine which was lightly fined then filtered before bottling.
Brand’s Laira is synonymous with words like heritage, excellence and history. To understand how this winery has established such a reputation, one must look to its past.
In 1893, a retired sea captain named Stentiford purchased a plot of land in Coonawarra. Naming it after his much-loved ship, Laira, Stentiford planted the land to Shiraz vines. Eric Brand, the first Patron of Coonawarra, became the custodian of the vineyard more than half a century later, continuing the tradition of creating exceptional quality wines.
The winery's landholdings have now grown to cover almost 300 hectares and fruit for Stentiford's Old Vines Shiraz is still sourced from the original vines planted by Captain Stentiford in 1893. With an impressive show awards history, Brand's Laira Coonawarra remains a steady and powerful beat in South Australia's heartland.
Don't Pay: $22
WBW Rating: 92/100
Closure: Stelvin
Region: Coonawarra SA
