Pauletts Clare Valley Riesling 2024
Taylors St Andrews Riesling 2024
G 93
G 93
Concentrated, structured and far from shy, St Andrews is big in personality. In 2024, it cements its reputation with a forceful display, intense in lime and citrus and backed up by assertive acidity which raises the question of long-term cellaring. Aromas are earthy, dusty in Granny Smith apple, lemon peel, lime juice with a hint of crushed Thai basil and ginger. Boasts a saline quality that brightens the tastebuds and a chalky texture that introduces a super dry, long-lasting citrus-intense palate, like sucking on a lime. So fresh! Drink now–2038 Taylors The Pioneer Shiraz 2018 G 93 The Pioneer Shiraz delivers a finely delivered elegance which may cause some Clare Shiraz drinkers to look again. Clare Shiraz can be a chameleon. There’s the fragrant scent in blue, black, plum fruits in spice, briar, pepper and vanilla – all nicely contained and precise. Time in bottle before release has built some lovely layers of complexity and depth of flavour, all within a medium-bodied frame. The focus is on dark fruits, spice, liquorice, chocolate and a peppery liveliness that melds into a dense, concentrated middle palate. While a generously flavoured Shiraz, The Pioneer carries it well, thanks, no doubt, to the fine-grained, even tannins that help bring that touch of refinement and elegance. Drink now–2032 Cabernet franc flying solo and bringing its usual red fruited elegance and floral aromatics to the fore. No fancy winemaking on show, just bright and lively cherry, plum, liquorice, rose petal and dried herbs with a touch of jalapeño pepperiness to enliven and lift the wine. It carries the ripeness of the fruit well, building on the mid palate into a dense, flowing style. Tannins are fine and support a wine that reveals more and more the longer it is open. Svelte and elegant. Drink: 2024–2028 Bourke & Travers Tuckey Syrah 2023 G 92 ArtWine Pack Leader Cabernet Franc 2022 A Shiraz by any other name that smells – and tastes – just as sweet and ripe as the Clare Valley can deliver. Just under 14% alcohol and it is ripe, black and plum fruits all the way, encased in lively woodsy spices, liquorice, cacao and black pepper. Introduces a savoury note that adds a touch of complexity with a layer of smoked meats and toasty oak, embroidered around the middle palate. Tannins are up to the task, which is to not only provide structure now, which they do firmly, but to guide the wine into the future. Drink now–2032 G 92
Pauletts brings body, texture and tangy flavours to its ’24 Riesling, immediately placing tastebuds on notice. That bitey grapefruit pithiness and lime zest is super perky and bright. There’s red apple, citrus and a light spice, too, which run long and deep across the middle palate. Acidity is crunchy but it runs in tandem with a warm textural element. It’s one deceptively busy Riesling. Drink now–2030
Sevenhill St Aloysius Shiraz Cabernet 2023
G 93
Australia’s own, distinctly original red blend, Shiraz Cabernet, looking every inch the warm and inviting style it is intended to be, not to mention generous in personality. Quality fruit stands out, nicely defined and delivered in a smooth, seamless way in aniseed, black cherry, plum, dried herbs, woodsmoke oak and baking spices with an earthy, autumnal underlying strength. Firm tannins form the base, allowing the fruit to fly. Drink now–2033 Sevenhill Spire’s Lament Viognier 2021 G 93 Does the grape proud with a sensitive rendition that skilfully wrangles the balance of ripe tropical and citrus fruits and texture against a solid background of acidity. It’s always a tough balancing act with Viognier, performed here with great success. Nectarine, peach, mango skin, tangerine and citrus with lifted orange blossom aromatics and a whisper of marzipan savouriness, and you have a wine that fills the mouth with great flavour concentration with a touch of phenolic grip. Drink now–2030
Taylors Masterstroke Cabernet Shiraz 2018
G 93
Medium-deep crimson. Red-fruited wine with ample red cherry, strawberry, redcurrant fruits and underlying roasted walnut, vanilla notes. Generously concentrated palate with buoyant red fruits, fine savoury/bittersweet tannins, appealing inky density and some roasted walnut, vanilla, red liquorice notes. Finishes chalky and minerally with some aniseed notes. Drink now–2030 Taylors St Andrews Riesling 2020 G 93 Clare Valley Riesling and bottle age were made for each other. At four years, St Andrews is a little forward and possibly showing the results of what was a challenging, dry, warm vintage but it remains undoubtedly in good drinking form. A rush of frangipani, honeysuckle florals, grilled grapefruit, beeswax and ginger aromas denotes a generous, ripe Riesling. There’s a wealth of flavour to enjoy on the palate enlivened by well-sustained acidity in the old school dry style that really cleans and brightens the palate. Drink now–2034
186
The Vintage Journal – Regional Focus
South Australia 2024
187
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