Seppeltsfield celebrates new winemaker with luxury wine release

Today, Seppeltsfield welcomes Julian Bermingham to their winemaking team, the sixth member of the growing team, Bermingham is a skilled Barossa winemaker with 10 years of local experience.

Together with the new appointment, Seppeltsfield have unveiled their annual collection of luxury still wines in a bid to show they’re not just fortified wine producers, as their reputation dictates.

Fiona Donald, Chief Winemaker at Seppeltsfield, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Julian to the winemaking team here at Seppeltsfield, it is a truly exciting time for our award-winning luxury still wine collection.

“We are proud of this year’s luxury collection of red wines, showcasing wines of style and depth, with future ageing potential in ideal cellaring conditions. The 2021 was a stellar vintage in the Barossa, given the cooler ripening season from start to finish, delivering exceptional quality,” she said.

Fermented in the historic 1888 Gravity Cellar, the collection takes inspiration from Barossa Australia’s Grounds project, a comprehensive study of the district’s sub-regionality, bringing together winemakers, grape growers and soil and climatic science experts to evaluate and identify the variations in Shiraz wine expressions across each Barossa parish.

Headlined by the fourth release of the Grounds range, the collection includes three expressions: The Westing, The Southing and The Northing. Each showcases the distinctive qualities of their respective vineyards, showing how regional terroir shapes Barossa Shiraz.

The wines were all harvested within a two-week period, fermented through the historic 1888 Gravity Cellar and matured in new and seasoned French oak hogsheads for 14 months.

“We remain dedicated to our ambition to match our reputation for the fortified wine collection with the luxury still wine collection. Fortunately, we have the means to do so with the combination of luxury vineyard holdings, historic 1888 Gravity Cellar and dynamic team,” said Donald.

With a combined total of 160 vintages of global experience, the “dynamic” team now consists of Executive Chairman Warren Randall, Chief Winemaker Fiona Donald, Senior Winemakers Charlie Seppelt and Matthew Pick, Group Viticulturist Kingsley Fuller and the newly appointed Julian Bermingham.

Featured image: Seppeltsfield's dynamic six-strong winemaking team

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