Spinifex La Cigale 2022

First introduced as an understudy to the Spinifex Garçon, this is the impressive follow-up to last year’s inaugural Cigale. Pete Schell’s flair with Mediterranean varieties is undeniable, and this juicy, bright, savoury take on a Southern Rhône blend is another feather in his cap. It’s a heady mélange of Mataro (56%), Cinsault (24%) and Grenache (20%) from Spinifex’s Dominion vineyard in Vine Vale and three growers in the Barossa GI. The Cinsault comes from an old block in Bethany, the Mataro from two blocks in Ebenezer in the northern part of the Barossa, and the Grenache is from Pete’s own vineyard, as well as from his usual Garçon sources: old, dry-grown vines in the Barossa’s deep, coarse, sandy soil. The sites feature predominantly dry-grown vines aged between 30 and 110 years, and soils vary from classic terra rossa to deep sand.
The fruit mainly fermented as whole berries (a small portion of Grenache bunches were retained) in tank. The wine matured on light lees for 10 months in a combination of concrete, steel tank and 1250- and 700-litre seasoned wood. Mataro shines through, bringing savoury, gamey aromatics and full-throated fruit while the Cinsault lends spice, perfume and elegance to the palate and Grenache rounds things out with juicy red fruits and remarkable freshness. The perfect package.