It’s only because he’s such an deep thinking sort of a bloke that Mark Lloyd is wrestling with the issue of what his Reserve Shiraz is all about. Historically it’s come from the 2.5 acres of shiraz vines on deep, rich soils planted back in 1919. But then, in 1998, his ‘young’ vineyard of around 30 years of age, planted on perfect terra rossa soils over a limestone base and located just fifty metres from the old vines themselves, started making some of the best shiraz at Coriole. Mark Lloyd couldn’t ignore their wine and couldn’t find a reason to exclude it from the Reserve blend. So, around a quarter of the 1998 Lloyd Reserve comes from what Lloyd describes as a separate ‘vineyard’, even though it’s indisputably on the same estate. He finds himself caught between the classic French or Californian approach of single vineyard wines versus a ‘pragmatically Australian’ multi-vineyard phenomenon, although as I’ve indicated, to anyone else they’d be considered the same site. ‘Until 1998 the old vine vineyard consistently produced the wine with the greatest depth and complexity’, he said. ‘But since the Lloyd Reserve is meant to be the wine of the vintage, we’ve had to adapt our approach.’ Don’t be concerned about winemaking integrity here – the inclusion of the ‘young vine’ material only increased the make by around 150 cases in 1998 to a total of 750 dozen, while the following year’s production has actually decreased. At the end of the day, Lloyd believes that the ‘real thing’ is what happens on the tasting bench – which barrels make the cut for quality and which barrels don’t. It’s this sort of attitude that has helped Coriole maintain its reputation for quality and value for so long. ‘While it may be a big wine relative to most Australian reds, the Lloyd Reserve isn’t a blockbuster by McLaren Vale standards’, says Lloyd. ‘It doesn’t show the sweet fruit of so many, but it does contrast with the more savoury and spicy Coriole Shiraz (the company’s very affordable other shiraz label). The two wines are partners in a way although they’re poles apart in price. ‘Oak plays a role in the flavour spectrum of the Lloyd Reserve which needs a few years for it to become integrated into a benchmark Australian shiraz style, while the Coriole shiraz has less contribution from oak, which helps the Reserve look that little bit more pristine. We’re always playing around with oak and even use about a quarter of French wood now.’
