2024 Brash Higgins RIPPLE Nero Shiraz

A deep and juicy red blend of Nero d'Avola and Shiraz, from the creative mind of Brad Hickey. Only a limited amount made...

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Description

What started as a random idea at a Sydney tasting - pick whole-bunch Nero d’Avola, drown it in direct-pressed Shiraz juice, and let it ferment into something wild - has turned into one of the juiciest, most smashable reds in the Brash Higgins lineup.

For 2024, Cabernet has stepped aside in favour of Shiraz, bringing a new depth and vibrancy to the semi-carbonic fermentation. Whole-bunch Nero clusters were fully submerged under a wave of Shiraz juice, allowing fermentation to happen inside the berries, creating a wine that’s light, fresh, and packed with ripe, slightly candied red and blue fruits.

It pours a darkk garnet hue, with a nose of blueberries, wild strawberries, and a hint of musk. The palate is bright, juicy, and bursting with energy, with lively acidity and supple tannins making it perfect for a light chill.

Part ripple ice cream, part Grateful Dead reference, and part pure drinkability in a bottle, this is a playful, delicious take on Nero that disappears faster than you’d like. Limited as always - get in quick.

There’s a story behind this wine, our first foray into intentional carbonic maceration. A fellow winemaker, Tom Colman, pulled me aside after a long consumer tasting in Sydney and said, “Brash, you should pick some whole bunch Nero d’Avola and flood it with direct pressed Shiraz juice and let it ferment”. I was intrigued and it haunted me. Why was I the one to which he chose to speak these mysterious words?

Two years later in 2020 we gave it a go. This wine, the 2024, is made from grapes grown on our Omensetter Vnyd. Freshly picked, whole bunch Nero d’Avola grapes were engulfed with direct pressed Shiraz. We switched from Cabernet to shiraz this vintage and love the new result. All the Shiraz juice covered the Nero grapes and their stems, submerging the clusters completely. The idea is that the sugar in the Nero berries, starved of oxygen, will ferment inside their little berry bodies and create a lighter, slightly confectionary flavour profile. My trusty pal, Q Wine from Queensland, who worked harvest with me in 2020, said it smelled like ripple ice cream, which is boysenberry vanilla swirl, and we were off! And then there’s the great song “Ripple” by the Grateful Dead. And then there’s also the wine from the 70’s in the US called Ripple which was, well, meant for the youth of America, believe it or not. But perhaps it’s the idea of ripples themselves, waves of ideas forever radiating outwards…cause and effect into eternity…

“Translucent garnet hue with a nose redolent of blueberries and candied wild strawberries and blue fruits with a touch of musk. On the palate, bright and juicy with red fruits and acidity. Nice with a light chill.” Brad Hickey, Vinitor, Nov 19, 2024



Additional Information:
Harvest: Feb 16, 2024
Vineyard: Omensetter Vineyard, Certified Organic
Grower: Brash Higgins
Planted: Nero d’Avola 2013, Shiraz 1997
Soil Type: Ngaltinga Formation; Red Clay Over Limestone
Viticulture: Organic Certified
Fermenter Type: Half Ton Nally Bin
Maceration: one week semi carbonic
Primary Fermentation: 12 days
Barrel: Ten Year Old French puncheon
Time in Barrel: 6 months
Bottled: September 19, 2024
Blend: 50% Nero, 50% Shiraz
Filtration: Coarse
Closure: Stelvin screwcap
pH 3.4, TA 6.1 g/l, ALC 13.2%

Price Bracket $31 to $40
Type Red
Body Medium Bodied
Variety Nero d'Avola
Country Australia
Region McLaren Vale
Australian State SA
Feature Natural/Lo-Fi
Alcohol 13%
Size 750ml
Vintage 2023
Closure Screw Cap

Brash Higgins

Brash Higgins is the label of winemaking American-turned-honorary-Aussie, Brad Hickey.

In his former life, Hickey was one of America's top sommeliers, working for many years crafting some of New York's finest wine lists. He came to Australia and fell in love with McLaren Vale and local vigneron Nicole Thorpe, with whom he now produces highly characterful, minimalist wines from their much loved Omensetter vineyard.

Hickey's wines are extremely expressive. They fall in two camps - the wines sourced from Omensetter vineyard and those sourced from friends around the Vale and the warm, dry Riverlands.

Brad Hickey AKA Brash Higgins - McLaren Vale, SA Brash Higgins

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