Limited Release

  Marsanne was one of the first varieties planted to our Descendant vineyard in 1994 and the distinctive varietal aromas of this premium fruit have been subtly enhanced with barrel fermentation, creating a textured, elegant wine style. Marsanne is a key component of the Northern Rhone’s Hermitage Blanc and it’s always been our intention to showcase this varietal with a single vineyard expression. The exceptional purity of fruit is completely reliant on the narrow window of ‘optimum ripeness’ and each row was assessed daily in the lead up to picking.

The Steading is very much the heart and soul of Torbreck, the wine that exemplifies our philosophy and beliefs - protecting and nurturing the old vine resources of the Barossa Valley is paramount to Torbreck and this wine. It is sourced from Grenache, Mataro and Shiraz vines that survived the worldwide phylloxera outbreak of the 1880s, and a century later, the vine-pull scheme in the Barossa in the 1980s. The wine is a result of the serendipitous discovery of small remnant patches of withered ancient vines, some well over a century old, that have been carefully nurtured back to life. The protection of this old vine resource of the Barossa Valley is central to the Torbreck story and this wine, more than any other, is an indication of what is possible from these historic cultivars. The Steading is a collection of 45 different sources of fruit, some from our own vineyard estates as well as from growers on a share-farming basis. These precious grapes are vinified separately and blended once their individual virtues have been assessed. The Steading’s generous and supple flavours combine with its silken texture in a wine that defines what is possible only in the Barossa. Torbreck is the name of a forest near Inverness, Scotland. You’ll find more than a passing nod to the Celts in our wine naming conventions including The Steading, a traditional name for a farm and its collection of barns, stables and outbuildings.

The Eden Valley, the cooler region to the east of the Barossa Valley, consists of river valleys and undulating hills covered with large gums, rocky outcrops and Aboriginal heritage sites. It is a high-altitude area of between 400 and 500 metres, compared with the Barossa Valley’s elevation of 200 to 300 metres. This higher altitude and 1 to 2 weeks later ripening pattern results in more distinctive varietal flavour characteristics, lower pH and higher acidities. While the Eden Valley region is most associated with the white wine variety, Riesling, it also produces elegant, tautly structured Shiraz which is highly prized by winemakers. This Torbreck Shiraz cuvée is a skillful blend of fruit from a 40 year old Eden Valley Shiraz vineyard and an 80 year old Barossa Shiraz vineyard – a marriage of elegance and intensity. Torbreck is the name of a forest near Inverness, Scotland. You’ll find more than a passing nod to the Celts in our wine naming conventions including Struie, which is a 157 metre high mountain in the rugged highlands of north-east Scotland. The view from the Struie down across the Dornoch Firth is as inspiring as that of the Valley floor from Eden Valley.