Eisenstone Hoffmann Dallwitz Ebenezer X11 Shiraz 2021
Purple Hands Wines Planta Circa Ancestor Vine Grenache 2023
G 98
G 98
Deep crimson. Intense ripe plum, strawberry hint negroni aromas with some dark chocolate spice notes. Superbly concentrated and flavourful wine with abundant strawberry pastille, raspberry, red plum flavours, lovely mid-palate viscosity and fine slinky firm tannins. Bittersweet with a touch of vigour at the finish. A brilliant wine! Drink now–or keep for a while 14% alc The Standish Wine Company Lamella Shiraz 2022 G 98 Deep crimson. Elderberry, dark plum, liquorice aromas with dark chocolate, ginger notes. Richly concentrated, dark plum, blackberry pastille, elderberry, grippy/ slinky/graphite tannins and beautifully integrated mocha, ginger oak. Chocolaty dry finish with a flow of dark berry pastille fruits. Absolutely top-notch, Drink
The grapes here hail from the Dallwitz Vineyard in the Ebenezer sub-region, belonging to the Hoffmann family. Maturation was in French oak for 20 months, 50% of which was new. The final wine, and this is the first release, is a barrel selection. The 2021 is a superb vintage. Just 400 bottles made. Black cherry/darkest purple colour, this is a wine of concentration and focus, intensity and very fine balance. The nose is full of chocolate, mocha, notes of roast meats, dried herbs, cassis and coffee beans. A wine of power and silk, muscle and elegance, and great length. Well structured, silk tannins and such an exciting future, the oak here is handled with grace. This will be stunning for at least 20 years. Drink now–2044 Eisenstone d’Or X10 Shiraz 2021 G 98 This wine is from the very best grapes the team can source each vintage – from a stellar year like 2021, we can, therefore, expect something really exciting. This year sees grapes included from the Greenock sub-region, with smaller contributions from Marananga and Ebenezer. The wine spends 20 months maturing in French oak, half of it new. 800 bottles. Dark mauve/maroon, the nose here exhibits dark chocolate notes, blueberries, woodsmoke, cassis, soy, mulberries and tobacco leaves. Good concentration, immaculate balance, intensity, drive, focus and great length here. The structure is seamless, the texture decadently supple, the oak superbly handled and the tannins the silkiest for which one could wish. This will provide pleasure for at least two decades. Drink now–2044 Henschke Mount Edelstone Shiraz 2019 G 98 Medium-deep crimson. Fragrant blackberry pastille, raspberry, praline, hint marzipan aromas with sage/bush garrigue notes. Supple and minerally with fresh pure blackberry, raspberry fruits, fine slinky /chalky textures, well integrated marzipan, roasted chestnut characters, attractive inky complexity and fresh long indelible acidity. Builds up brambly firm, pure and tight with star anise notes. A lovely claret style with beautiful volume and understated power. Should age very well. Henschke-embossed bottle. Vino-lok seal. Keep for a while–2038+ 14.5% alc Langmeil Lineage Shiraz 2018 G 98 Deep crimson. Lovely roasted coffee, mocha, blackberry, panforte aromas with marzipan notes. Beautifully concentrated, smooth and long with developed choc- berry, panforte, vanilla, marzipan flavours, rich chocolaty tannins, superb mid- palate volume and well-integrated acidity. Tannins flow into a graphite-like plume at the finish. Fruit melts into the tannins. Power and elegance combined. Based on 125-year-old-plus ancestor grape vines. Drink now–2040 14.5% alc
now–2034 14.9% alc Yalumba The Caley Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz 2014
G 98
Medium-deep colour. Very expressive with roasted coffee, black cherry pastille, cassis, mocha aromas with tobacco/hint sage notes. Beautifully balanced wine with black cherry pastille cassis fruits, loose-knit chalky/grainy tannins, superb mid-palate volume and viscosity and underlying espresso/mocha oak complexity. Finishes leafy firm with seductive dark berry fruits and a lovely tannin plume. A beautiful wine that has developed into something special and lasting. Evoking the very best of the Australian Cabernet Shiraz tradition, it’s destined to become a classic vintage of the decade. 82% Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Barossa Shiraz. 20 months’ maturation in 41% new and 59% seasoned French oak barriques.
14% alc Drink 2023–2038 Henschke Hill of Grace Shiraz 2019
G 97+
Deep crimson. Beautiful cassis, blackberry pastille, roasted chestnut, espresso, herb garden, star anise aromas. Silky smooth and inky textured wine with ample blackcurrant, blackberry pastille fruits, fine loose knit graphite tannins, crunchy fresh acidity and beautifully balanced mocha, roasted chestnut, hazelnut nougat, dark chocolate notes. A lovely chalky bitter-sweet finish with a fine tannin plume. Saturated and buoyant with superb mineral length. Atypical for Hill of Grace but I suspect bottle age will haul it back into line. A fascinating vintage and a beautifully made wine. 14.5% alc Drink now–2038+
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The Vintage Journal – Regional Focus
South Australia 2024
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