The long awaited best-seller from Kilikanoon has arrived back on our shores, but with a little difference. The 2013 vintage of the GSM – Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, the classic Rhône blend – now falls under the Killerman’s range, already loved by our customers for their Shiraz. The difference is that previously, under the Medley name, the GSM grapes were sourced from the Barossa valley - now they are taken from the area known as Killerman’s, in the Clare Valley.
For those of you that aren’t familiar with the Kilikanoon range, the winery was set up in 1997 by Kevin Mitchell and his father Mort, who had already been working the land for his whole life. The pair started experimenting with old bush vines and making wines with the focus on expressing their terroir – they have a number of small sites across Clare Valley, Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale. From these humble beginnings the winery is now one of Australia’s most respected and highly acclaimed producers, winning awards left, right and centre, but never losing sight of what matters – quality wines which speak for themselves.
The Killerman’s site, so-called after a reclusive country man who lived on the land hunting and foraging, is located in the bushland just behind the winery itself, in the hamlet of Penwortham in The Clare Valley. Here the climate is slightly cooler than Barossa so those that were familiar with the style of the Medley will now find that the GSM has a slightly more earthy, savoury profile, but the power and spice of the Shiraz grape still comes bounding through in this blend. With dark cherry fruit and natural acidity from the Grenache added to a good dollop of tannin from the the Mataro (Mourvedre), the wine then undergoes sixteen months ageing in French barrels before being bottled unfiltered. It is drinking now but will certainly keep for at least a decade if you have the patience!
The 2013 Killerman’s GSM was listed in James Halliday’s Top 25 Reds of 2015, and scored 95 points from Australia’s toughest critic in the country’s most prestigious wine competition. It also won a gold medal in the IWC awards in June this year. Kilikanoon was awarded a 5-star winery rating in 2004 which it still holds. Kevin Mitchell was named winemaker of the year 2014. You get the jist - they know what they’re at.
