2024 S.C. Pannell Blewitt Springs Grenache

A re-imagined take on the Old McDonald Pannell Grenache that showcases the beauty and class of Blewitt Springs.

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Sale price$45.00
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Description

Stephen Pannell’s infatuation with McLaren Vale Grenache dates back to the mid-nineties, long before the variety became the region's darling. He built his eponymous label on the belief that these vines produce better, more graceful medium-bodied reds than Shiraz ever could in this maritime climate.

This specific release feels like a homecoming, pulling fruit from the sandy soils of Blewitt Springs - specifically a site Pannell affectionately dubs 'Old McDonald', which supplied his very first independent Grenache. The 2024 season delivered a cool spring and a dry, warm autumn, yielding a crop with dialled-up natural acidity and striking aromatics.

The fruit was hand-harvested in early March and fermented in an open-top stainless steel vessel with a modest twelve per cent whole-bunch inclusion. It spent just ten days on skins with regular pump-overs before being pressed off and tucked into a large, seasoned French oak vat for maturation, eventually going to bottle completely unfined and without adjustments.

It sits wonderfully in the glass as an open, juicy take on sand-grown Grenache, shedding heavy extraction for bright, crunchy red fruit, a dusting of floral aromatics, and a zippy citrus-like edge that keeps the palate completely refreshed. It's a ridiculously good entry point into the Pannell stable of Grenache wines and for our money, one of the best bang-for-your-buck premium Grenache in The Vale.

“My interest in Grenache stretches back to the mid 1990’s. Upon arriving in McLaren Vale, a

preference for making medium-bodied wine led me to Grenache and the love affair began.

Grenache is ideally suited to McLaren Vale and perfectly at home in our warm climate by the sea

matched with our food and lifestyle.

I find that McLaren Vale Grenache ages more gracefully than Shiraz. Grenache is well on its way to

becoming McLaren Vale’s most recognised wine and our true wine of place.” SCP



THE VINTAGE

The season started with a cool spring followed by rain in January and finished with a dry autumn.

Favourable weather conditions at set and flowering resulted in healthy crops. Heat in March suited

alternative varieties. The red wines have terrific varietal aromatics, natural acidity, juiciness, flavour

and tannin balance and are all definitevely medium-bodied. White varieties offer pretty aromatics,

perfect acidity, complex flavours and are set up for long lives.

WINEMAKING

Variety 100% Grenache

Varietal Origin Sardinia or Spain; an ancient variety with origins that are hotly



contested.



Vineyard Blewitt Springs, McLaren Vale

Process Hand harvested on the 8th of March. Fermented in one stainless steel

open-top fermenter with regular pump overs, 12% whole bunch. Left

on skins for 10 days before a gentle press. Settled in tank for 13 days

before transfer to an old French oak vat for malolactic fermentation

and maturation. Racked twice and bottled without fining, additions, or

adjustment in December 2025.



Alcohol 14%

Ph 3.41

TA 6.8

Total Sulphur 82ppm

FOR THE SENSES

Flavour Profile Classic raspberry and spice, aromas and flavours typical of McLaren Vale

Grenache grown on sand. Excentuated by pommegrante and satsuma

plum on the back palate, laced with musk and Turkish delight.

Structure & Texture A juicy, vibrant, fruit-driven palate with a blood orange character gives

lift and refreshment and the tannins ripple and flow to give length.



CELLARING

The first vintage so we’ll hedge our bets and say 10 years.

SERVING

Try with a Pannell family favourite from Jose Pizzaro’s ‘Andalusia’ cookbook: Chickpea and

Spinach stew - A dish with a long history and a nod to Moorish culture.

Price Bracket $41 to $50
Type Red
Body Medium Bodied
Variety Grenache
Country Australia
Region McLaren Vale
Australian State SA
Size 750ml
Vintage 2024
Closure Screw Cap

S.C. Pannell

Quite simply, Stephen Pannell is one of Australia’s finest and most imaginative winemakers. He’s a Jimmy Watson Trophy winner, a McLaren Vale Bushing King winner, a two-time Max Schubert Trophy winner, International Red Winemaker of the Year and Decanter Magazine’s 50 Most Influential Contributors to the World of Wine. Nick Stock described him as potentially “one of the greatest Australian winemakers ever to make wines in our age”.

Steve’s wines are made with modern Australian food and wine culture at the front of mind. The wines come from a range of stunning McLaren Vale and Adelaide Hills vineyards, and are made from sustainable varieties that properly suit his South Australian climate. They're built around brightness of fruit and savoury tannin structure, and whatever your poison is Steve has you covered!

He is truly one of the most forward-thinking and inspirational Australian winemakers alive today.

Visionary winemaker Stephen Charles Pannell Discover S.C. Pannell

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