Red Wine - Lionheart Shiraz

The Lionheart of Dandelion Vineyards is our old vine Barossa vineyard. These ancient, gnarled vines, many over a hundred years of age, are not only surviving but thriving on their own roots in some of the oldest soils on the planet.

In the last week of April whole bunches of Shiraz were hand harvested, then gently crushed and naturally fermented in open fermenters for eight days, hand plunged twice a day, before careful basket pressing into some new but predominantly older French Oak Barriques to finish fermentation. After 18 months maturation and a racking in the same oak, we bottled our Lionheart without filtration or fining, to capture the essence of the vineyard. Dandelion Vineyards Lionheart is ready to drink and will reward cellaring and decanting.

This wine is suitable for vegans.

Awards

• The New Zealand International Wine Show 2021 – 98 Points, Double Gold Medal
• Great Australian Shiraz Challenge 2021 – 95 Points, Gold Medal
• “SAKURA” Japan Women’s Wine Awards 2022 – Gold Medal
• Women’s Wine & Spirits Awards 2022 – Gold Medal
• AWC Vienna 2022 – Gold
• Wine Orbit Reviews, Sam Kim – 5 Stars, 95 Points
• James Halliday Wine Companion, Jeni Port (8 December 2021) – 92 Points, Silver
• The Real Review, Aaron Brasher (March 2022) – 92 Points
• Decanter World Wine Awards 2022 (DWWA) – 91 Points, Silver Medal
• International Wine Challenge 2022 (IWC) – Silver Medal

Tasting Notes

Colour

Deep dense dark-bright violetpurple and determined. Grainy.

Nose

Intense dark berry and dark chocolate aromatics. Deeper aromas then meld with a complex yet subtle bouquet of soy, lavender, laurel, pink peppercorns, rosemary in Spring, eucalyptus bark when it rains, and smoked paprika - just a knife’s finest point. 

Palate

Plush fruit and berry flavours flood and fill - dark, concentrated but all at once fresh and alive. A flow of sweeping tannins as if taken at the tide. Drying, gripping and extending the wine. Tannins sit with acidity at palate’s end to reach a natural rapprochement, as the dark berry fruits’ diving bell-like depth free-dives further into a shiraz abyss.

Drink

Truisms abound in wine lore. The most complex and intriguing wines deserve or perhaps demand the least complex and intriguing foods. Keep it simple. Barossa. A good butcher’s best sausage grilled over vine trimmings and served with steamed cabbage and German mustard. We very dare you.

Winemaker

Elena Brooks, BSc (Oenology) Adelaide.

Specifics

Composition: 100% Shiraz, Alcohol: 14.5%, Latitude 34°38’10” South, Longitude 139°05’30” East, Altitude 1441 Feet = 440 Metres.

Product Details

Region : Barossa Valley, South Australia

Vintage : 2022

Variety : Shiraz

Volume : 375ml