2015 OMENSETTER Shiraz-Estate Single Vineyard
Brash Higgins’ 2015 Omensetter is 100% made from fruit grown at the BH Omensetter estate vineyard. The site owes its name to the eponymous hero of the William H. Gass novel “Omensetter’s Luck”. Ever since Brash Higgins’ founder Brad Hickey first laid eyes on the site in 2007, he has dreamed of capturing its promise of goodness in a select blend of grapes. The vineyard was planted in 1997 by Brad’s partner, Nicole Thorpe, and as of 2017 is fully certified organic by ACO.
85% Shiraz and 15% Cabernet, 2015 Omensetter was aged over three years in two new 500L French Ermitage puncheons, before being allowed to mellow in bottle. The tradition of extended barrel ageing represents a stylistic tangent from the progressive wines for which Brash Higgins has become renowned, but imposed itself as the only approach for this grand, time-honoured Australian style of wine.
Brad Hickey remarks, “We are not the first to do extended barrel and bottle ageing—on the contrary—but it’s a first for Brash Higgins, and that is why we’re so excited now that it’s ready to drink.” To complement the traditional technique, Brad chose a chunky 1859 Burgundy bottle with art deco design as the perfect home for 2015 Omensetter. He then handpicked each premium cork (using dry soak analysis) to guarantee a clean seal. “It’s an attention to detail,” he says, “and well worth sniffing 1,200 corks for my peace of mind.”
On the tasting bench, the distinctive blood orange flavour profile of the shiraz together with the black tea and ferrous notes of the cabernet make perfect sense and taste sensational. ‘Think wicked notes of aged beef, fresh beef blood, charcoal embers, creosote, cloves, sweet cherries, dungeons, and a brooding intensity, yet still youthful and energetic—stuff that challenges the grey matter between my ears,” says Brad.
A modern addition to a proud tradition, 2015 Omensetter will leave a legacy all of its own. The Brash Higgins team has plans to create new interpretations for 2016 and 2018. There’s not a lot of wine here to last very long.
1,200 bottles, 60 Magnums, 16 Jeroboams
Price: $120 per 750ml bottle, $720 per six bottle case. Please enquire about larger formats.
