Hayes Family Estate Mataro Block 3 2022

Hayes Family Wines is a small, family-owned producer based in Stone Well, on the Western Ridge of the Barossa Valley. Founded by Brett Hayes and helmed by winemaker Andrew Seppelt — a Barossa veteran with over 25 years' experience, including a stint as GM and winemaker at Torbreck — the label is built on old, dry-grown vineyards farmed with minimal intervention, letting each site and vintage speak for itself. The Estate Vineyard is Certified Organic and Certified Sustainable, and Hayes has carried a five-star rating in the James Halliday Wine Companion every year since launching.

2022 will be remembered as the second near-faultless Barossa Valley vintage in a row, following an equally impressive but very different 2021 — both among the coolest seasons since 2002. Good spring rains left healthy soil moisture heading into the growing season, followed by a warm, dry run that produced balanced, healthy canopies and an average-sized crop of exceptionally high-quality fruit. It's arguably one of the best back-to-back vintages the Barossa has seen since 1990/91, if not longer — vibrant colour and flavour in the reds, real lift in the whites, and outstanding overall quality throughout.

This Single Block Estate Mataro comes from Block 3 of the Estate Vineyard in Stone Well — very old bush-vine Mataro, grown on gravelly loam over red, mottled clay. Both Certified Organic and Certified Sustainable.

Deep, dark and dense in colour, with a tint of purple. The bouquet is intense and earthy, with a dusty, terracotta character and the smoky pepperiness so typical of Mataro. On the palate it's full-bodied, dense and concentrated, with firm, almost tough tannin giving real grip. Focused and penetrating, this is a wine that needs a little more time in the cellar to fully loosen up and show its best — but the bones of something serious are already there.