Toolangi’s F Block is a one-hectare plot perched on the highest, easternmost sector of the 11-hectare Dixon’s Creek vineyard. Nestled in the corner, within touching distance of the Toolangi State Forest to the northeast and in the afternoon shadow of a large hill to the south, it’s a well-sheltered plot. This position helps preserve the high levels of natural acidity critical to maintaining balance from a site famed for powerful flavour. The soils are shallow and rocky, with more white clay than lower down, which Kaspar Hermann credits with the wine’s sculpted, chalky personality. Yields are always low, rarely providing more than seven or eight barrels, and in this poor flowering year, Hermann had enough for just five. The 21-year-old vines are Gingin clone and produce thick-skinned, full-throated fruit with plenty of spicy nuance and phenolic structure.
The 2024 season was mild and calm with an easy-going spring that provided the best flowering in years. The wines from this year show and distinct regional charm and a pleasing ripeness to complement the chalky, mineral edge. The grapes were hand-picked and whole-bunch pressed into barriques (20% new) for wild yeast fermentation. Around a third of the wine went through malo, remaining without sulphur until blending and bottling.