Seppeltsfield, established in the Barossa in 1851 and with an unbroken lineage of cellared single vintage tawny from 1878, has made no secret of its aim to position its 100-year-old wines as being desirable for the new-generation luxury market. The Riedel partnership marks the latest in a series of steps to draw fresh attention to its rare annual wine offering.
The Seppeltsfield winemakers and marketing team conducted a tasting masterclass with Riedel Australia staff during 2023 to test 12 different glasses from the existing Riedel range with the aim of finding the ideal drinking vessel for such old, concentrated wine – and sent a bottle of the 1924 Para Vintage Tawny to company CEO Maximilian Riedel in Europe for consideration. They reached a unanimous decision that the Riedel Vinum Cognac Hennessy Glassware presented the wine in the best possible manner.
‘For such a highly concentrated fortified wine, we found this glassware best delivered the complex mix of aromas and flavours to the taster. A new design wasn’t required because the Vinum Cognac Hennessy glass worked perfectly. We were surprised how much it lifted the best attributes of this wine,’ said Lauren Mudge, Seppeltsfield’s head of sales and marketing.
The pairing of tested stemware with Seppeltsfield Para Vintage Tawny builds on steps taken in 2023 to modernise and refine packaging of the 100-year-old wine in elegantly shaped 100ml glass vessels. The success of this transformation prompted Seppeltsfield to go further by positioning itself alongside other luxury brands such as Riedel.
Such a partnership is designed to help draw attention to the 1924 wine that continues the Seppeltsfield Centennial Collection. The world’s only unbroken lineage of single vintage Tawny dates back to 1878, with each of the vintage wines having seen a minimum of 100 years in oak barrels within the Centenary Cellar at Seppeltsfield before being released to the market.
The 1924 vintage is surprisingly deceptive, being fresher than expected for a 100-year-old wine. The aroma is especially powerful, yet its richness is measured and tempered by clean, sweet notes, with concentrated coffee essence and an undertone of dark molasses framed by a whiff of green walnut liqueur, cedar cigar box shavings and vanilla pod.
Coloured the deepest walnut brown, with glowing amber ember at the rim, the wine shows a sweet meld of Shiraz, Grenache and Mourvèdre components (although percentages of each grape variety used in the blend were not recorded at vintage). On the palate, it’s an intriguing long flavour ride, with a more explosive initial impact than recent Para Centenary releases. After a smooth entry, it bites sharply as slightly bitter herbal notes and a spicy nutmeg tingle interrupt a rich, rolling chocolate and coffee tide that fills the mid palate, with acid keeping the structure taut and the flavours clean and clearly defined. The concluding note of concentrated coffee and cocoa sticks to the walls of your cheeks long, long after the last drop has drained down your throat.
Seppeltsfield chief winemaker Fiona Donald expressed surprise at the wine’s vitality. ‘The 1924 vintage shows incredible intensity, volume and mouthfeel, remarkable freshness and length driven with a type of blood orange acidity,’ she said.
Mudge said that the Seppeltsfield cellar door tasting room is now transitioning to use only Riedel stemware for presenting tasting samples of 100-year-old Para Vintage Tawny. Customers purchasing the 2024 Para Vintage Tawny can also have a pair of Riedel Vinum Cognac Hennessy glasses included with the boxed wine bottle for an additional A$110.
* Seppeltsfield 1924 100-Year-Old Para Vintage Tawny is available in the UK via Bancroft Wines (RRP £1,250, including sales tax), and in the US via LEGEND imports (US RRP $1,750). It is also available from Seppeltsfield Cellar Door or via Seppeltsfield.com.au with shipping possible worldwide.
