Nearly a year later and my last bottle (sigh.) Notes very much the same, except this time there was an immediately attractive nose - black raspberries and savoury oak. Very very impressive.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Good ripe McLaren Vale Grenache characters, but something is not right. I suspect the addition of acid during the winemaking process has left this thinner and not as rich as it would otherwise be. Disappointing but I hope to be wrong after a few more years of bottle age.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Dark ruby, but fairly translucent. The nose is fairly muted, but very attractive when you can sniff it out: dark berries, dark oak. On the palate: kapow! An explosion of fruit and oak flavour, dark berries, perfect acidity, tannins in the background providing structure but no rasp. Very very impressive - if you want a full-bodied, full-on wine. And why not, from time to time. Not to say it's unbalanced or over the top: on the contrary, it's a carefully made wine, in a big but well-balanced style. I've recently had the 2010 and 2013 vintages of the same wine and I can tell you that this is twice as impressive as either. So, drink within five years - and enjoy! I drank it alongside a fairly fancy, Grenache-heavy Chateauneuf du Pape - this brings twice as much joy. Highly recommended. Screwcap, 14.5%.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Professional reviews have copyrights and you can view them here for your personal use only as private content. To view pro reviews you must either subscribe to a pre-integrated publication or manually enter reviews below. Learn more.
2/29/2024 - DFBW Likes this wine: 90 Points
Drinking nicely. A rich and meaty wine with decent dark fruit and soft texture. Solid.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/30/2022 - Duncan wrote: 94 Points
Nearly a year later and my last bottle (sigh.) Notes very much the same, except this time there was an immediately attractive nose - black raspberries and savoury oak. Very very impressive.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
7/25/2021 - agriffin wrote: 89 Points
Good ripe McLaren Vale Grenache characters, but something is not right. I suspect the addition of acid during the winemaking process has left this thinner and not as rich as it would otherwise be. Disappointing but I hope to be wrong after a few more years of bottle age.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/25/2020 - Duncan wrote: 94 Points
Dark ruby, but fairly translucent. The nose is fairly muted, but very attractive when you can sniff it out: dark berries, dark oak. On the palate: kapow! An explosion of fruit and oak flavour, dark berries, perfect acidity, tannins in the background providing structure but no rasp. Very very impressive - if you want a full-bodied, full-on wine. And why not, from time to time. Not to say it's unbalanced or over the top: on the contrary, it's a carefully made wine, in a big but well-balanced style. I've recently had the 2010 and 2013 vintages of the same wine and I can tell you that this is twice as impressive as either. So, drink within five years - and enjoy! I drank it alongside a fairly fancy, Grenache-heavy Chateauneuf du Pape - this brings twice as much joy. Highly recommended. Screwcap, 14.5%.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/21/2020 - kostaslonis wrote:
Australia Trade Tasting (London): 14.5% The wine shows more fruit, easy, oaky, tough, harsh
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment