The 2022 vintage marks the 130th anniversary of the Block 6 vineyard, planted in 1892 by the Kay family. It’s available to purchase now online or at our cellar door. We’re excited to have received scores of 96 points from the Halliday Wine Companion and JamesSuckling.com for this vintage.

“…winemaker Duncan Kennedy’s mission to deliver detailed and refined wines clearly continues. Those snaking, knotted old vines deliver suitable gravitas across deep red and dark fruits, black olive, soused black cherries, Earl Grey tea, panforte and ground aniseed. The tannins are agreeably fine, mineral feeling, the fruit powerful but buoyantly aloft, never heavy. There’s a traditional feel to this, but the filter is modern and the lens macro-focused. Excellent.” Marcus Ellis, Halliday Wine Companion

“Bold yet sophisticated aromas of blackberry compote, blackcurrants, violets and cedar as well as cured meat, mulberries, blueberry bush and cocoa beans. The palate is seamless with a full-bodied mouthfeel, finely integrated tannins and bright acidity. There is such a lovely freshness and energy to this wine and a generous yet integrated amount of oak with a floral-toned finish. Made from 130-year-old vines. Drink or hold.” Jamessuckling.com

About Block 6

Plan of the Amery Hillside vineyard from the Kays’ 1894 diary.

Block 6 was part of the original vineyard planted by the Kay family shortly after they arrived in McLaren Vale. In May 1891, brothers Bert and Fred Kay ordered 60,000 vine cuttings from Thomas Hardy’s Tintara vineyard, including 30,000 Shiraz cuttings. In 1892, they transferred 5,890 Shiraz rootlings from nursery beds to Block 6 in the south-east corner of Amery Hillside vineyard. Around 2000 of the original vines remain.

Picking Shiraz in Block 6, around 1900.

The Block 6 vineyard faces east and rows run north-south with significant undulation. The vines are cane pruned with the canes wrapped onto the top wire of the low lying trellis. The present 1.5 hectares comprises a corner of red loam, some heavy clay in the middle of the block and gravelly alluvial soils on the lower side. The underlying ‘South Maslin Sands’ geology is extremely complex containing layers of glauconite, limestone, sandstone and siltstone. In 1984, Colin Kay first made Block 6 Shiraz as a single vineyard wine. From the first vintage, it stood out for its depth, structure and complexity and quickly earned a reputation as an exceptional expression of McLaren Vale shiraz.

Colin Kay in Block 6 with Sam, 2012.