Tasting note
Colour - Mid-depth ruby red.

Aroma - Ripe plum and redcurrant notes with a creamy milk chocolate edge.

Taste - Velvet textured with ripe plum and cherry character, a slight mocha note and a creamy layer.

	Type:Still Red Wine		Country:Australia		Appellation:South Eastern Australia
	Grape Type:Merlot		Drink Before:End of 2010		Body:Rich and Flavoursome
	Alcohol:13.5%		Bottle Size:75cl		Bottle Code:60268

Description
Enjoy this rich, smooth Merlot from Down Under, one that uses the great grape of Pomerol and Saint-Emilion, two Bordeaux regions that certainly put this variety on the map.

It's from the outstanding De Bortoli winery, which is praised to the heights by many wine critics. Both Peter Forrestall and Stuart Gregor named it 'Winery of the Year 2007' in their separate publications, the latter writing "This is a family winery that is showing the way forward. Every winery in Australia could learn something from De Bortoli."

The cellar dates back to 1928, four years after the founder, Vittorio De Bortoli, aged 24, left his hometown in the Italian Alps and set sail for Australia to seek his fortune. He left behind him his family, sweetheart Guiseppina and everything he held dear, but hoped Australia would offer him a more prosperous life.

By 1928, this entepreneurial spirit had bought his own 55-acre fruit farm just outside Griffith and a year later, Guiseppina had earned enough money working as a maid in France to join him. The main family winery still stands on the same spot in Griffith, now with vineyards and a cellar also in the trendy and relatively cool wine-growing region of Yarra Valley and another parcel in the King Valley.

This smooth, easy going, full-fruit red is named after the many sheep that roam this outback area, their coats picking up the dust from the red earth.

Red Sheep Oak Aged Merlot 2007 is available in the following cases: