"Gaia is one of the most astonishing vineyards you'll see. Planted at 570 metres, at the highest point of the Clare Valley, the vineyard is an elongated triangular wedge of emerald green that sits above the rolling golden cornfields of the Clare Valley. Named after James Lovelock's books, Gaia is a metaphor for the importance of the diversity and complexity of species."

Extracted from 'The Red Revolution' by Anthony Rose, The Independent (UK) November 2002. To read the full article, click here.

Grosset Gaia 2007

Only 820 cases produced

Most pundits can't resist the temptation to deliver a verdict on the quality of a vintage; in fact, it's their job to do so. Most often consumers prefer easy, sweeping statements that will be less difficult to remember. It's generally accepted that many parts of Eastern Australia had a tricky vintage or worse in 2007. There are, of course, exceptions. And exceptions also occurred even in regions that suffered from the vagaries of harvest. As always, the Gaia Vineyard was carefully managed and produced top quality fruit in 2007 and Jeffrey Grosset believes that this release of Gaia is once again about poise and balance.

 

The 2007 Grosset Gaia is less austere than the 2006 ‘Gaia’ and more like the relatively approachable 2005. There's a generosity to this wine that is unusual at such a young age, although this is accompanied by that powerful, deep, ultra-concentrated blackcurrant and briary flavours that is characteristic of the wine.

             

As usual, it's a blend of cabernet sauvignon (75%), cabernet franc (20%) and merlot (5%): complex, tightly structured yet fleshier than it often is at this age. There is a seamless integration of fruit, cedary oak and ripe, silky tannins that give it restrained elegance. It needs five years to be at its best, yet many will find it enjoyable before then.

 

The fruit from the windswept, high altitude Gaia vineyard close to the peak of the Clare Valley was once again hand harvested, followed by fermentation on skins at a relatively high temperature of 28 degrees before pressing. The wine was matured in French oak barriques for sixteen months before bottling in February 2009, and then held a further year before release.

 

General Cellaring Guide: Cellar 4-15 years but can be enjoyed now.