70 acres with the principle varieties being Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. The majority of the vineyard is between forty and one hundred years in age. This age, combined with minimal irrigation, produces rich, concentrated fruit for exhibiting classic varietal characters.

The Barossa Valley's climate has been classified as 'Mediterranean' which amounts to warm summers (average temperature in January is 25° to 35°C) and cool wet winters with an annual rainfall of 550mm.

We use supplementary irrigation only when required, i.e. when the vines are on the verge of maximum stress. By maintaining leaf vigor we hold the fruit quality to full ripeness.

The majority of the vineyard is planted east to west, allowing the breezes from the Barossa ranges to flow through the rows rather than across them. These breezes assist with canopy management.

Some of the older blocks on the vineyard are planted with unknown clones, however, all plantings since 1949 are Shiraz 1654, BVRC12 or BVRC30, with the Cabernet Sauvignon being G9V3 or LC10.

The trellising used throughout the vineyard for recent plantings is simply a double wire vertical with single wire trellising used on earlier plantings.

Pruning and canopy management is assessed on an individual year basis. Generally we mechanically prune and then follow through by hand to clean up and remove excess wood. Harvesting takes place in the cool of the night allowing quick delivery from vineyard to winery, eliminating any possibility of bacterial spoilage or oxidation.

Determining when to harvest is generally decided on the obaume (sugar level), but on most occasions the winemaker will decide on flavour concentration and each block of vines in the vineyard assessed on an individual basis, allowing us to produce premium quality wines of absolute excellence.

IN THE WINERY

In the past Elderton Wines have used contract winemaking facilities for primary fermentation, however in 2003 and onwards, we will be processing our fruit on site in our new winery facility. These state of the art facilities include a crusher, air bag press, centrifuge, 80-year-old concrete open fermenters (The site was previously occupied by Penfolds), and temperature controlled stainless steel static fermenters.

The wines are then pumped over to our maturation cellars where they are matured and carefully monitored until blending and bottling, allowing us to maintain the high quality wine styles for which we are renowned. Our winemaking technique is a combination of traditional and modern practices.

Tasting notes
A stunning effort, the 2002 Shiraz Command exhibits an inky/blue/purple color as well as a sweet perfume of camphor, blueberries, blackberries, acacia flowers, and smoky, toasty oak. Full-bodied, opulent, and viscous, with huge, but sweet tannin, decent acidity, and a muscular, long, 40+ second finish, this is a classic, potentially long-lived, Barossa blockbuster. It's accessible now, but ideally needs another 2-4 years of bottle age, and should keep for two decades.    (hide)