Description
"Here we go! This is everything I love about modern McLaren Vale - pure red fruits, perfume and freshness, lovely fine tannin. A seriously smashable blend from two of our great winemaker mates in Brash and MJC. Proud to offer this little gem exclusively to our customers. Get some!"
- Tom Hollings (Different Drop Co-Founder / Wine Buyer)
We are thrilled to be the only retailer in the country to offer you access to this exciting collaboration between two of McLaren Vale's finest producers.
The Van Higgins "Free Ball" Grenache Cinsault is a 50/50 blend from the creative minds of good mates Michael J. Corbett (Vanguardist) and Brad Hickey (Brash Higgins). It was conceived over many late nights sharing bottles of 'baller' (hence Free Ball) reds from some of the Rhone Valley's finest, the likes of Gramenon, Rayas, and L’Anglore, a medium-weight red blend that captures the best of McLaren Vale is where they settled.
It's a deliciously harmonious blend of Grenache and Cinsault, each variety bringing its unique flair to the table. The Grenache comes from the gnarled 'goblet' bush vines on Vanguardist's 'Silver Sands' Rende Vineyard in Blewitt Springs. The Cinsault comes from the Lennon Vineyard in McLaren Vale, just outside the front door to Brash Higgins HQ. Half the fruit was destemmed and the other half kept as whole bunches, then ageing in a combo of 600L ceramic eggs and demi-muid barrels. This kept the wine fresh and bright, focused on the excellent fruit quality on display, without the hindrance of heavy-handed oak.
We love the freshness and flow of this wine. It's all red and blue fruit, some frisky spice, floral accents and beautifully shaped tannin that lingers long on the palate.
There were only 123 dozen made and it is only available from the two producers' websites and here at Different Drop.
93 points
"A bold pop of ripe cherry, dried roses, a bit sappy, dried herbs, raspberry too. It’s medium-bodied, a lively and vibrant wine, cherry soda and some turned earth, rosehip tea, fennel crunch, bright cranberry acidity, there’s some clay-like things, and dusty tannin grip, with a juicy/savoury finish of excellent length. It’s fun, and it drinks a treat. Spicy and interesting."
- Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)
Customer Reviews
| Price Bracket | $31 to $40 |
| Type | Red |
| Sub Type |
Grenache | Blends |
| Body | Medium Bodied |
| Variety | Grenache |
| Country | Australia |
| Region | McLaren Vale |
| Australian State | SA |
| Feature |
Organic |
| Reviewed By |
The Wine Front |
| Critic Score |
93 |
| Alcohol | 13% |
| Size | 750ml |
| Vintage | 2023 |
| Closure | DIAM Cork |
Vanguardist
Winemaker Michael Corbett Vanguardist
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Shipping
Delivery is free on orders of $150 or more!
For orders under this amount, delivery is calculated at checkout based on your postcode. You can order in any quantity or combination of wines you like. Straight dozens are not required.
We will dispatch your order the same or next business day.
Estimated delivery transit time varies depending on your location. Please review this page for specific estimates.
Sydney (Our Vans): If no one is home and there are no special delivery instructions our driver will try to call for instructions. If the driver believes there is a safe space to leave your wine they will do so if not, they will return the item to us and hold your order until further instruction from you.
Melbourne (Anonymous Wine Freight): If no one is home and there are no special delivery instructions, the courier will try to call for instructions. If the driver believes there is a safe space to leave your wine they will do so. if not, they will return the item to their dispatch centre and hold until further instruction from you.
Australia Post: Australia Post will leave the parcel if they have been given authority to leave and it is deemed safe to do so. To give your Authority to Leave, please enter this in the 'SPECIAL REQUEST' box at checkout.
Ordering
We want Different Drop customers to always be getting the best price. If you see a lower price elsewhere, just get in touch and we will sort it out for you. We handle all our price-matching on a case by case basis.
Some things to keep in mind:
- Retrospective price-matching is available for 30 days after you have purchased from us.
- The price match cannot be used in conjunction with a coupon or one-off deal we are offering. The idea is for you to get the best price in the market so if that is already achieved through a coupon then we won't price match on top of that.
- We don't price match clearance or fire sales.
- We’ll match the listed price as long as it is a legitimate offer and the competing store is actually able to fulfil the order (they have stock or more stock is en route). Essentially we won't price match cheeky vendors listing wines they have no hope of actually getting for you...
- It must be a publicly listed price. We won't match a price that has been achieved through a coupon/cash-back arrangement, or through a non-advertised offer over the phone or otherwise.
- It is limited to a reasonable retail quantity.
We'll treat each price match request on its merit and reserve the right to refuse where we deem fit. For example, particularly rare wines, from non-trust-worthy vendors, in circumstances we deem illegitimate or if we feel our policy is being unfairly taken advantage of.
At the end of the day, we'll look after you and use common sense to ensure you're getting the best price, please just don't take the p%$$!
No, feel free to mix it up! There is no minimum requirement. You can order wines in any quantity or combination, 1 or 50+ bottles.
We stock three different sized gift boxes (single, three bottle and six), all are available for purchase for a flat rate of $8. They look great and make an awesome impression.
To add a gift box to your order, simply add at checkout. The special requests box is your friend, please give us as many details of what you are looking for and we will try our best, or get in contact to discuss it with you.
If you want to bulk order gifts or if you have any trouble please email hello@differentdrop.com or call and we can try and help.
If you can't add more wine to your cart it means we are low on stock of that wine. For example, if you are only able to 3 bottles and no more that means we only have 3 bottles left of that wine. If it's a must have, please contact us and we may be able to order more in for you.
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Please don't ever hesitate - we would love to help! Whether it's a problem we can fix, a wine you're not 100% sure on or if you simply want to talk about wine, food and the meaning of life, we are here for you.