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P. F. Red is a blend of good stuff like Pinot Noir, Shiraz, Grenache and Merlot. The really essential ingredient, for the sake of early drinking, is the Pinot Noir.

PF stands for preservative free. This wine has no sulphur dioxide added at any stage of its manufacture.

This is the age of concern for the environment and for us. 'Chemicals' are suspect, whether in the soil, the crops, or by way of processing additives.  The fear is that the chemical ends up in us and "does us a mischief".

Some of us have acquired a sensitivity to sulphur dioxide and this wine is one that will not inflame that condition.

The wine relies upon potent natural factors for it’s conservation namely

• clean disease free fruit
• hand harvesting to avoid fruit damage
• transport in small containers to avoid crushing the fruit
• 14% alcohol
• abundant tannin
• pH antagonistic to spoilage organisms
• optimising conditions for a clean ferment
• cool temperatures in conservation
• deprivation of substrate that would support micro-organisms
• deprivation of nutrient
• deprivation of oxygen during conservation
• close filtration prior to bottling as a security factor
• extraordinarily careful winemaking technique

PF Red will hold its condition in bottle as well as any wine with 'preservative'. A minimum of five years may be expected. There is little to be gained however in cellaring it beyond 4 years of age. It is our aim to produce a wine that can be consumed with satisfaction from release date.

Preservative Free Red 2004

Adrian Read of www.sydneycafes.com.au: Plummy smell, rich dark colour and taste, lots going on as far as complexity and with a nice soft, almost furry, sensation in the mouth. A big red and anyone who likes the Barossa style of wine will love this one. Super friendly, a big, warm, huggable wine that will treat you like your best mate, good on ya! We thought this was just delicious. We also took this one to lunch, where, as we recall, Meghan drank most of it. Buy plenty now and enjoy it with your friends, they’ll love you for it. Ronnie thought this would age well too. Just a reminder, preservative-free does not mean hangover/headache-free, as Meghan can attest to.

Preservative Free Red 2000

James Halliday: Medium red-purple; a soft, gently earthy/spicy bouquet is followed by a palate which as at the end of February 2001 was still fresh, and has quite good tannin structure, which will, by rights, retain its freshness for a little while yet. Rating 84 Drink 2001 Date Tasted Feb 01

Preservative Free Red 1999

Australian Magazine wine writer Max Allen: 'A brilliant, young, dark purple colour, with good, bold, berry fruit and a spicy, direct whack of juicy current flavour in the mouth'

This is the age of concern for the environment and for ourselves. 'Chemicals' are suspect, whether in the soil, the crops, or by way of processing additives. The fear is that the chemical ends up in us, and as they used to say, "does us a mischief".

Australia's aridity and its isolation helps to keep us free of fungal diseases and old world insect nasties. We, and our plants, probably breathe the cleanest air on this planet. These are significant natural advantages.

Australian winemakers are at the forefront of winemaking technology in producing clean, attractive, fruity wines. The most important contributing element to this phenomenon is well-ripened grapes and the use of non chemical options to maintain the health of a wine prior to bottling. These techniques include minimal handling, refrigeration, use of inert gas and filtration. It is possible to make wine with very low levels of preservative and in the case of P.F. Red we have a wine so carefully made that it requires none at all.

Some of us have acquired a sensitivity to sulphur dioxide and this wine is one that will not inflame that condition.