Grant Burge 2020 Hillcot Merlot features with beautiful red and purple hues. Blackberry, cherry, mint, dark chocolate, mocha and sage. The juicy palate has a perfect balance between fine integrated tannin and good lengthy persistence of chocolate and red berry flavours. The cool and wet conditions followed by warm conditions during summer resulted in a very late vintage. The extended hang time on the vine with increased canopy density due to the wet spring and summer allowed the fruit to attain excellent flavour ripeness, while maintaining good levels of natural acidity. The fruit was crushed into static fermenters and left on skins to extract the colour and flavour of the fruit. The wine was fermented at between 24-28 Degree Celsius to retain delicate fruit characters. The wine was matured in a combination of french and american oak for 15 months before being bottled.