BOTH the clearance and average were up in a successful sale for Pepper Well Poll Merinos at Keyneton on Tuesday.
With 28 rams sold from 36 offered - an extra eight more than sold last year - and an average of $1000 - up $110 - stud principal Hansi Graetz had every reason to smile at the conclusion of the day's proceedings, which he summed up in one word: "good".
The top price ram at $2000 was a 98-kilogram, June 2014-drop, 18.8-micron sire secured by David Holt, Eden Valley.
With a 2.8M standard deviation, 14.9 per cent coefficient of variation and 99.7pc comfort factor, Mr Holt said the ram appealed for its "clean, free and open" fleece.
"He's also got good crimp and good conformation, and will also give us a bit more meat," he said.
The ram will be used over young, mixed-blood Merino ewes in the Holts 650-ewe flock.
Mr Holt said they had used Pepper Well bloodlines regularly "many years ago" and were now coming back for more.
"Hansi has a good line-up here, the bloodlines now are good and he is very passionate about what he does," Mr Holt said.
A number of buyers secured three rams each, including RG&TA Hentschke, Roseworthy, DW Kubenk & Sons, Murray Bridge, Bundilla Pastoral, RG Seidel, DM&SM Schirmer, Mount Pleasant, Broughton Vale Pastoral and AJ&AG Schiller, Strathalbyn.
The sale was conducted by Landmark Mount Pleasant, with Murray Bullen the auctioneer.