Description
Established in 2000, Massena was begun by Dan Standish and Jaysen Collins who until 2006 were employed full time at other Barossa wineries (Dan as winemaker at Torbreck and Jaysen as general manager at Turket Flat). All Massena wines are from 100% Eden Valley and Barossa valley fruit from dry-farmed, low yielding vines up to 155 years age located in the north-western Barossa. Working mostly with traditional Barossa varieties, they have also established experimental vineyards of other varieties like Roussanne, Viognier, Barbera, Primitivo, Dolcetto, Tinta Amarela, Graciano, Saperavi and Tannat.
Wines are made using traditional techniques such as open fermentation and basket pressing and are aged in tank or seasoned French oak; no American oak is used here for maturation. All varieties are hand harvested and fermented using indigenous yeasts and wines from each vineyard are raised and kept separate until final blending. These are wines of striking purity and natural intensity that reflect their origins and which offer outstanding value.
From the winemakers about this wine: “The Moonlight Run was our midnight drive back to the Barossa after working vintage in the Clare Valley in 1999. We would crave a soft slurpy wine to wash down a hard night’s work, so we decided to make our own. We take inspiration from Southern Rhone wines and this is our take on them.
“Shiraz 42%, Mataro 30%, Grenache 28%, from Greenock, Lyndoch, Koonunga Hill and Tanunda. The 2022 vintage gave some light and fragrant wines, allowing our first Shiraz dominant Barossa blend. Shiraz from the clay and limestone of Greenock, coupled with some red berried Shiraz from Tanunda provides a svelte and linear component to this Rhone styled blend. Mataro from dry grown vines on the red clay soils of Koonunga Hill, fermented with 30% whole cluster inclusion, adds the tannin backbone. Old vine Grenache from the Western ridge behind Lyndoch, where the clay soils are dense, is fermented with 50% whole bunches included. This complex Grenache fruit adds red berry and smoked meat flavours as the of this blend. Daily pump overs early in ferment, followed by punching down as the ferment finishes, ensure gentle and controlled extraction. Aged in seasoned French Oak Puncheons, each parcel is selected and blended just before bottling in December 2024.”
“Red/purple in colour, with amaro and savoury whole bunch complexities on the nose with panforte, orange rind and smoked meat aromatics. Coffee liqueur, roasted cumin and coriander with red berry flavours abound on a bright and linear palate. Complex and interesting, this wine finishes dry and spicy making it an ideal gastronomic wine.”
94 points, Dave Brookes, Halliday Wine Companion “This is such a pretty wine; it’s lighter in body thanks to the ’22 vintage conditions and it makes for fantastic drinking. Red/blue fruits, plenty of spice and bunchy nuance along with hints of dried citrus rind, clover blossom, panforte, dried meats, red licorice and earth. Lithe, filigreed and textural, there’s a great energy to this wine. Good stuff.”
RRP $34 Our Special Price $27.50 when you buy 6 or more of this wine
