2008 Durif Magnum

EAT WITH ... Durif loves game, venison and stronger meats. Also great with slow cooked hearty winter casseroles and roasts. Our Vineyard Supervisor, Paul, recommends kangaroo pie served with red currant jelly.

CELLAR ... up to 10 years.

PRONUNCIATION ... Durif [dyoor-if; DUR-if]

Vintage conditions
Rutherglen fared particularly well in a vintage that saw floods and heat-waves cause havoc in many other Australian regions, with generally dry and moderately warm conditions resulting in great flavor development and wine balance. Yields, particularly in red varieties were lower than expected, largely due to small berry sizes, adding great intensity of colour and flavour.

Tasting notes
Durif is a red grape variety whose origins are in southern Rhône region of France. No longer recognised in France, most plantings of Durif are now in northern Victoria and California USA, where it is known as Petit Sirah. Durif has small indelibly coloured berries and highly tannic skin. It is known for it’s incredible inky colour, full flavour, firm tannins, and ability to age and cellar well.

Durif is ideally suited to Rutherglen, as it is a late ripening variety, requiring a warm climate and an extended ripening period to develop its full flavour and structural potential. Durif has been grown in Rutherglen for over a century, the particular Rutherglen ’clone’ has developed an intensity and complexity of aroma, flavour and structure that is not seen in any other region of the world, justifying Durif’s recognition as Rutherglen’s icon variety.

Our Durif has an incredible depth of colour and flavour. Intense varietal berry and stewed cherry notes, mixed fruit spice, licorice, chocolate and cedar from elegant oak enhancement.

Winemaking
Our Durif is deliberately picked at varying stages of ripeness, not only to maximise the broad spectrum of flavours and aromas that the variety can display, but to produce a balanced, well structured and refined wine without the excessive alcohol levels with which Durif wines are often associated.

Fruit is harvested at cool temperatures and then soaked for 48 hours before inoculation and fermentation with a spicy Rhone yeast. The finished wine is aged for up to 13 months in a combination of large French and American oak barrels, and approximately 10% of this oak is new.

Wine detail & analysis
Variety Durif
Region Rutherglen, North East Victoria
Harvest date February to March 2008
Release date December 2010
Alcohol 14.5%
Oak treatment Up to 13 months in new and old French and American oak vessels
Total acid 6.6g/L
pH 3.55
Residual sugar 0.27g/L

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Chris Shanahan, Canberra Times, 28 August 2011
RUTHERGLEN ESTATES RUTHERGLEN DURIF 2008
This is a comparatively tame expression of Durif, a variety noted for its impenetrable colour, colossal tannins and high alcohol content - endearing features to its fans. The estate's marketing manager, Patrick Gehrig, writes that the wine, "is deliberately picked at varying levels of ripeness, not only to maximise the broad spectrum of flavours and aromas that the variety can display, but produce balanced, well structured and refined wine without the excessive alcohol levels which Durif is often associated with". It's refreshing to find such a forthright and honest press release. It captures the essence of this big, warm, tannic but soft red.'

Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front, 5 August 2011
RUTHERGLEN ESTATES DURIF 2008
I liked the 2007 release but this 2008 Durif from Rutherglen Estates is a bargain for the cellar. It's a tough, tannic release - in a positive sense. It boasts robust sweet-sour blackberry and chocolate, fennel-leaf and loganberry flavours and while yes, the wine's rusty, leathery tannin is challengingly dry and assertive, it's great to see a wine made in this fashion, released at this price. It tastes regional, sturdy and good. Rating 91+'

James Halliday Australian Wine Companion, 2012 Edition
SINGLE VINEYARD DURIF 2008
Has retained depth and brightness to its red-purple hue; this is such a flexible variety, always managing to produce a pleasing red wine, as it does here. Rating 89'

Tony Keys, The Key Report, 8 July 2011
RUTHERGLEN ESTATES DURIF 2008
'Dark fruits on the nose and broad sweeps of slightly bitter flavours (very adult) in the mouth its something different. 93 points and very worth its $22.'

Jay Miller, Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate, 30 June 2011
RUTHERGLEN ESTATES 2008 DURIF
'Very deep purple-black in colour, the 2008 Durif (Petit Sirah) offers pronounced notes of prunes, dried mulberries and spice cake with a whiff of tilled loam. Full bodied and generously fruited, the palate yields very crisp acid and a medium level of velvety tannins, finishing long and spicy. Drink it now to 2016. 91 points'

Tony Love, Herald Sun, 22 March 2011
RUTHERGLEN ESTATES 2008 DURIF
'Rutherglen's big red icon variety might appear as an alternative variety to the mainstreamers, but it's been here since 1908 and has played a huge role in the vintage port styles of the area. As a table wine, it can be overwhelmingly grippy but here there's good plum compote fruit flavour with spice and flesh, with the grip in the tail.'

SILVER Victorian Wine Show 2010
SILVER Rutherglen Wine Show 2011

BRONZE Royal Melbourne Show 2010
BRONZE Rutherglen Wine Show 2010
BRONZE Cowra Show 2011
BRONZE Perth Royal Wine Show 2011
BRONZE International Wine & Spirit Competition, Southern Hemisphere, 2011

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	Bottle: $40.00 Inc. GST
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