Graciano Vertical Tasting 2006 to 2023

From time to time, and not often enough, we get together to taste the back vintages of our wines as a group. With three out of the five of us skilled wine show judges and the other two being no slouches either, there’s some impressive experience in the room when we get together.

Going back to the very first Graciano from our vineyard, the 2006 was a rare treat. Even more of a treat to discover it’s still holding up remarkably well, there’s still fresh fruit flavours layered over developed earthy richness. This was a surprising wine to us all for its incredible longevity, fruit integrity and downright tastiness. Perhaps we shouldn’t have been surprised, the last time we did a vertical tasting back in 2014 it was a favourite, but still, to hold so beautifully for another ten years is a remarkable feat for any wine, particularly from young vines and a completely unknown variety in the region.

The lovely thing about having so many wines to compare from the same variety, same vineyard and same winemaker is we can make some firm conclusions about the future. We were all amazed at the longevity of the wines, even those from more difficult vintages still showed lovely flavours and character. The best wines from the better years would comfortably hold up against more esteemed vineyards, varieties and regions. Graciano has truly been a success for Mount Majura Vineyard and the future looks bright for this variety on our ancient limestone and volcanic soils. The only problem, we wish we could release these wines with a little more age, they truly stand the test of time in a good cellar.