You just don't see a lot of Grenache in Victoria. Even in the warmer regions it's not always warm enough to get fully ripe. That is, unless you find a site blessed with all of the pieces falling directly into place.

Enter Heathcote's Col Mountain vineyard with its steep, rocky topography that captures just enough sun for the heat-thirsty grape.

Now while this is a great example of Victorian Grenache, it is an even greater example of a winemaker's magic touch weaving a common thread through their bottles. This wine drinks like a Michael Dhillon-made Grenache. It has a delicate finesse about it that is sometimes missing in producers that focus solely on it. 

Dhillon handles the grapes with care, ferments them in the same open-top fermenters he uses for his famed Bindi Pinots and aims for a fragrant and powerful wine.

On the timing of the harvest, Michael Dhillon makes an interesting comment: "Leave it too long and it can become fruit sweet in an unpleasant way. Pick too early and the best red fruits and fine tannins will be missing. There’s a point at what seems to be before really observable ripeness occurs, when the grapes contain enough of the best things, and that’s the time to harvest."

Whatever he did, the wine is singing. If you have the patience, give it just a few years to become fully integrated and you'll have what I consider to be one of Australia's best Grenaches.