foundstone Merlot

A softly textured, fresh and easy drinking wine with notes of
plums and chocolate enhanced by a hint of vanilla.
Producer
Established by Bob and Cherie Berton in May 1996, Berton Vineyard is one of Hallgarten's
most important partners.  The estate covers 30 hectares of land located on gently rolling
hills at 450 metres above sea level, in a subregion of Eden Valley in South Australia. The
superb Reserve Shiraz and Reserve Chardonnay wines are still sourced from this plot. In
2007, Bob purchased the Yenda winery in the heart of the Riverina. This state-of- the-art
facility has the capacity to process 20,000 tonnes and enables Berton Vineyard to
produce value for money wines which sit alongside their premium single vineyard offerings.
V
ineyard
The age of the vines is varied.  The vines are planted approximately 1.8 metres apart with
3.6 metres between the rows to allow machinery access. All vines have been spur pruned
and are trellised on a single wire cordon. The loam to clay-loam soils have moderate to
high fertility.
W
inemaking
The parcels of fruit were fermented separately in stainless steel potters at temperatures of
26 to 30°C with premium French toasted and untoasted oak. An extensive pump-over
regime took place to ensure the desired levels of extraction. Fermentation lasted four to six
days before being pressed at 1° Baume and it was left to ferment through to dryness. The
best parcels were selected and the wine went through malolactic conversion with French
oak resulting in a softer expression. The wine was cold stabilised, clarified and stored in
stainless steel to retain the freshness.
Tasting Note
This Merlot has a deep youthful colour with expressive aromas of plum, blackberry and
violet. The palate has a velvety texture with generous flavours of sour cherries, plum and
fragrant herbal notes with a hint of vanilla oak.
Grapes
Merlot 100%