Thistledown Fool on the Hill Grenache 2024

Drink it now or cellar for up to 20 years. It is recommended to decant it for half an hour.

Founded in 2010 by British MW Giles Cooke, Thistledown is a renowned and award-winning Australian winery. The company focuses primarily on artisanal wines, with a special focus on Grenache (especially from old vines), but also produces excellent Chardonnay and Shiraz.

Made in just under 2,600 bottles, the Fool on the Hill is a Grenache-based red from Joel Mattschoss's Trial Hill vineyard, a stunning hillside site overlooking the Barossa Valley. Here, the old, bush-trained vines are isolated at approximately 500 meters above sea level and produce grapes with great concentration and minerality. After the morning harvest, fermentation occurs spontaneously with 20% whole bunches in concrete pyramids. The finished wine then ages for 11 months in oak.

On the nose, the wine reveals an intense aromatic profile with ripe notes of flowers and red fruits (particularly cherry, pomegranate, and currant) and spicy and mineral hints. On the palate, it is soft and rounded, full-bodied and expressive. It features fine, well-integrated tannins and a distinctive minerality. The finish is long and fruity. It is a wine capable of cellaring well for several years, but can already be enjoyed with pork belly or roast mallard duck.