Barossa Wine Guide 2026

Henschke The Nurturer Carignan Blend 2024

G 94

Medium crimson. Intense and perfumed raspberry, apricot fruit salad, violet aromas. Pure, supple and round with intense raspberry pastille, apricot, hint marzipan flavours and fine loose-knit chalky tannins. Minerally finish. Not a wine for ageing but a really lovely early drinking style with extraordinary pure fruit aromas and flavours. Drink now Hewitson The Mad Hatter Shiraz 2023 G 94 Medium-deep crimson. Alluring black cherry, redcurrant, roasted walnut, aromas with bush garrigue notes. Generously concentrated black cherry, chinotto flavours with well-integrated roasted walnut, cedar notes and fine sinuous/polished tannins. Finishes firm and lasting with bittersweet/ liquorice notes. Drink 2028–2034 Hutton Vale Single Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 G 94 Medium crimson. Dark chocolate prune cassis walnutty aromas. Sweet fruited and generous dark chocolaty, cassis, dried plum graphite, fine sinewy grainy/ cedary textures and lovely minerally length. Sharp finish. 14.8% alc Drink 2028–2033 Irvine Wines Grand Merlot 2019 G 94 If the Old Vine Shiraz took us into heavy bottle territory, this might just be the heavyweight champion. Serious stuff and a case of this will save you a trip to the gym. This is generally recognised as Australia’s finest Merlot, vintage after vintage. For good reason. Merlot was incredibly popular at one stage, before the Sideways effect turned that into a train wreck, but that story has been told so many times, we won’t revisit it here. A garnet hue, there are notes of plum pudding, mushrooms, both red and dark berries, dried herbs, raspberries and leaf litter on the nose. This is energetic and absolutely full of life on the palate. A sleek texture, fine acidity, excellent balance, a lingering finish and silky tannins all combine to elevate this into a seriously good wine. Under cork. Drink now–2035. John Duval Wines Annexus Mataro 2023 G 94 Medium-deep crimson. Raspberry, hint boysenberry aromas with ferruginous notes. Medium concentrated and pure with ample red and black fruits, sinewy firm, slightly rusty tannins and underlying liquorice, roasted walnut notes. Drink now–2030

South Australia Wine Guide 2026 | Barossa

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