The 2021 Murray Street Aria Shiraz is a powerful and highly selective old-vine Shiraz from Greenock on the Western Ridge of the Barossa Valley, representing one of the flagship wines of Murray Street Vineyards. Aria is created through a rigorous block and barrel selection from treasured old-vine parcels within the estate's Greenock vineyard, with only selected barrels making the final blend. The 2021 season provided excellent conditions for Barossa Shiraz, allowing the fruit to achieve concentration while retaining freshness and natural structure. Murray Street uses 100% estate-grown fruit and follows sustainable and regenerative farming practices, with Aria designed to express the depth and intensity of its Greenock terroir rather than simply relying on ripeness and extraction.
The fruit was hand-harvested on 15 and 17 March, with the individual blocks fermented separately. The wine was predominantly destemmed while retaining whole berries, with approximately 10% whole bunches, followed by 14 days on skins and gentle extraction. It was then matured for 13 months in oak followed by another five months in large-format oval cask, using tightly grained French oak with a small component of Austrian oak; approximately 48% was new oak. Bottling was unfined and unfiltered. At 14.2% alcohol, the 2021 combines considerable concentration with control, showing blackberry pastille, dark plum and black fruits alongside violet, liquorice, star anise, ink, spice and a subtle mineral character. The palate is powerful and long, with tightly packed, chalky tannins providing the framework for the dense old-vine fruit.
