Golden times: A granite Belt pioneer celebrates a half-century of shiraz

 

Angelo Puglisi in his beloved shiraz
vineyard. Picture: Ballandean Estate

For any winery to celebrate 50 years of one variety is a proud achievement. When it is a winery on Queensland’s Granite Belt it is even more notable given the Sunshine State’s comparatively recent foray into the wine industry.

However, the 2018 vintage of Ballandean Estate’s shiraz marked 50 years since founder Angelo Puglisi planted shiraz on his Ballandean property.

It’s an almost accidental achievement. Angelo in his youth wanted to be a mechanic but circumstances dictated otherwise and he followed his father on to the family farm.

Given his Italian background, wine was always around. The family grew table grapes among other things and what didn’t make it to market was turned into wine, not always the best. Angelo remembers many that were too green or too overripe and a few that were already approaching vinegar status.

It didn’t stop him from deciding that there was a future for wine grapes in the region and in 1968, with the help of volunteers from Stanthorpe Rotary, he planted a vineyard of shiraz that is still going, although a little knocked about by the severe drought of 2020.

Angelo thought it was a prediction for the district’s future that the temperature when they planted the vines was well below freezing. “I just knew we were going to become known as a cool-climate area,” he jokes.

He was right. Ballandean and the Granite Belt with many vineyards planted above 800m is among the highest wine-growing areas of Australia.

It does mean those shirazes will never rival the sometimes over-the-top ripeness and lusciousness levels achieved by the Barossa Valley or McLaren Vale. But they are lovely medium-bodied styles than can mature gracefully for decades. A 1996 version that featured at a recent celebration dinner for Ballandean’s shiraz story was drinking beautifully. It may not have had the pure fruit characters of younger versions but it had lovely complex savoury features and a fine tannin and acid finish.

The 2011 vintage is still showing youthful dark berry and spice on the nose and palate, with fine tannins and acid that suggest it still has a decade or two in it.

The 2018 Anniversary version is flavoursome and well-balanced youngster that should repay another couple decades in the cellar, while the currently available 2019 also has lovely dark berry fruit, spice and pepper, with trademark fine tannins and acid backbone.

The drought and bushfires mean that it’s unlikely there will be a 2020 vintage but early indications are that the ’21 promises a return to top form.

For more information, go to www.ballandeanestate.com