Bondar Hope Springs Eternal Blewitt Springs Grenache 2023

Bondar Hope Springs Eternal Blewitt Springs Grenache 2023

Bondar’s Hope Springs Eternal wines are sourced from vineyards that Andre and Selina consider among the best McLaren Vale sites for each given variety. In the case of Grenache, this means Blewitt Springs in deep sandy soils. Each vineyard must also sit at high elevation to adhere to Bondar’s preference for elegant, fine, quietly powerful wines. This wine used to be labelled Higher Springs Grenache.

Sue Trott’s Wilpena vineyard lies in the heart of Blewitt Springs. The vines were planted in 1952 and are dry-grown on deep sand. It faces steeply east—an uncommon aspect in McLaren Vale, but Bondar’s favoured—and thus misses out on much of the warm, late-afternoon sun. According to Bondar, the Trott vineyard tends towards a darker fruit profile than his Rayner site, alongside impressive power and structure.

To this end, the parcel was split into two ferments, one with 80% bunches and the other with 10%, to build fine structure and bring out the best of the site’s darker-fruited profile. The wine is bottled after 10 months in amphora and seasoned Stockinger demi-muid. The quality of the site, as well as 2023’s cool, fresh signature, shines through in this year’s release. It’s incredibly pure, with high-toned perfumed and a dense, focused, driving core with plenty of savoury depth.

"Formerly Higher Springs, but now Hope Springs Eternal. The suspension is killing me. I did my own bottle image, because it looks nice and I could not find one elsewhere. This is from 1952 plantings on the Trott Vineyard. 70% whole bunch. Ten months in anfora and one seasoned 600L Stockinger barrel. Nice. That’s the way you do it. 778 bottles produced. We have reviewed 66 McLaren Vale Grenache wines from the 2023 vintage and this sits near the top. As an aside I just opened a bottle of CM’s 97 point 2023 Bulman Gary’s Grenache (Whaite Vineyard, Blewitt Springs) just to check in. They are both lovely wines. The Bulman more to Etna/Pinot Noir (lighter colour, spicy, aromatic, green-flecked, light, pumice stone and the like), the Bondar more to Barbaresco (darker, earthier, more silty in tannin). “With great power comes great responsibility.” Well, that’s Spiderman’s philosophy, though in this case I will go with Jeff Fenech “I love youse all.”

It’s tea time. Here we have rosehip and Earl Grey tea, dusty spices, blackcurrant and raspberry, mint and thyme, hazelnut paste, something stony with a waft of petrichor (happy for you to pop me in Pseuds Corner, but that’s how it seems). Medium-bodied at most, spicy, a pomegranate tang through a dark fruit profile, crushed stone tannin, orange peel, something of a Barbaresco thing happening here too (again, don’t mind me), with a peppery and dusty finish of excellent length. Wonderful wine. Beautifully made. Specific." 96 Points – Gary Walsh