Langmeil “The Freedom 1843” Shiraz
WHY WE LOVE IT
- Langmeil Winery is home to The Freedom 1843 Shiraz, believed to be planted by vigneron Christian Auricht in 1843. Escaping war and persecution in Prussia, Auricht travelled to his new homeland, finding freedom in the Barossa Valley.
- The original plantings still survive and are some of the oldest and rarest vines in the world.
Varietal Composition: 100% Shiraz
Elaboration: The harvest is hand-picked and delivered to the winery, where they are gently worked through the de-stemmer before being transferred to open fermenters. The juice is pumped over twice a day for seven days to extract, homogenize and regulate temperature before draining and hand loading the basket press by shovel. The skins are then gently pressed for approximately 20 hours to retrieve more of the essence of the grape. The pressings juice is then blended with the free run juice, collected earlier. After each wine destined for barrel has completed its malolactic fermentation, it is matured in new and seasoned French oak barrels (73% new and 27% old) for 25 months prior to bottling. Langmeil does not fine its wine and uses only minimal filtration during all stages of wine production to guarantee individuality, quality and longevity.
Tasting Notes: Deep crimson with purple hues. An intense aroma of ripe Satsuma plum, mocha, vanilla and savory notes combine with hints of cedar and sweet spices. Rich, sweet fruit is balanced wonderfully with prickly and sweet spices and lovely, silky tannins. A full-bodied, textured wine, showing great complexity with hints of cedar and allspice flowing through to the lengthy, brambly fruit finish.
PRESS
2014 – 91 Wine Spectator | 93 Wine Enthusiast | 93 James Suckling | 95 Vinous | 95 Wine Advocate
2016 – 96 James Suckling | 97 Wine Advocate
2017 – 94 James Suckling | 95 Wine Advocate
2018 – 95 Wine Advocate
2019 – 95 Wine Advocate
PRODUCER BACKGROUND
Langmeil is a blend of Barossa’s cultural beginnings and a family’s modern day commitment to world-class, old vine winemaking. Once a trading village established in 1842, this remarkable place is a captivating pocket of Australia’s wine and vine history that is a must when visiting the Barossa.Owned by the Lindner family, whose own mark on the Barossa spans six-generations of farming, food, community and wine, Langmeil is renowned for its preservation of old vines and the making of distinguished wines from these cherished sites.At the pinnacle of its winemaking is The Freedom 1843 Shiraz, made from what is understood to be the world’s oldest surviving shiraz vineyard believed planted in 1843 at the heart of this historical patch of Barossa earth.
At Langmeil, the Lindner family strives for excellence in both the vineyard and winery, to produce wines that sit amongst the world’s best at prices everyone can afford. The renowned Australian wine writer, James Halliday AM, in his Australian Wine Companion, rates Langmeil a ‘five red star’ winery. In 2014 Langmeil’s flagship wine, The Freedom 1843 Shiraz, joined the prestigious Langton’s Classification VI honour roll in the ‘excellent’ category. Today, Richard, Shirley, Paul and James continue to recognise the efforts of all who have helped shape Langmeil to become the world-class winery it is today. Their legacy is to build on a foundation of excellence in wine, community and culture, which they hope the seventh generation will aspire to, maintain and build upon.