Shiraz Wine

Winemaker Description

Classic McLaren Vale Shiraz. Crimson-purple in color. Aromas of dark plum, boysenberries, subtle black pepper and a touch of licorice. On the palate is where the wine becomes fascinating. Rich and opulent black plums, blackberries and boysenberries are intertwined with savory spices, mocha and a plush coat of red cherries. Tannins are ripe and velvety. Acidity, alcohol and oak are finely tuned, and their balance enhances length on the finish.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2021

91 Points Wine Enthusiast | Savory notes of sage and bay leaf are as forward on the nose as the plum and cherry notes. There’s a lick of vanillin oak showing, too. The abundance of tangy fruit continues its journey in the mouth, lingering on the finish amidst a powerful, well-placed frame of tannins. (2021).

90 Points James Suckling | Good shiraz, strongly regional, aromatic and attractive. While I query the dryness of the tannins here, there is ample pleasure to be found behind a veneer of violets, purple pastilles, blue fruit, iodine and licorice. A little reduction creates tension without ever becoming too hard. (2021). 

Winemaker Description

This wine is a deep red with a bright magenta hue. Vibrant aromatics of red and black berry fruits, a lift of violet florals, clove spice and mixed garden herbs. The palate is dominated by a lively burst of berry fruits, which are well framed by fine, powdery tannins. Juicy plum and blackberry flavors persist through the finish, with sweet spice to close.

As the wine ages over the decades, these young characters become more complex to create a symphony of flavours on the palate, supported by the further refined tannins of its youth.

Expert Review

92 Points Wine & Spirits Magazine | Peter Barry makes this wine with fruit from his family’s Lodge Hill Vineyard, in the hills three miles east of the township of Clare. It’s a shiraz with vibrant flavors of red and black raspberries, showing off the cool side of Clare in 2017. Fresh and bright, opening to graceful intensity, this is ready to take on crisp-edged grilled pork.

Winemaker Description 

This full and round bright-red wine with crimson hues give way to a subtle sweetness on the palate. The criminally intense vanilla aromatics are balanced with ripe raspberry and plum fruits. The vanilla aromatics carry through on the palate and complement subtle flavors of raspberries, dark plums and chocolate. Red berry fruit and plush tannins provide a lingering finish perfect for any evening.

Winemaker Description

A soft, approachable medium-bodied Shiraz with vibrant fruit flavours. 

Winemaker Description 

Lindeman's Bin 50 Shiraz is a vibrant and bold Australian red wine. It showcases rich flavors of ripe blackberries, plums, and cherries, complemented by a touch of spice and subtle oak. The wine has a full-bodied texture with smooth tannins, offering a well-rounded finish. Its bold profile makes it a great pairing for barbecued meats, hearty stews, or dishes with rich flavors like grilled sausages or spicy curries. It's an excellent choice for both casual dinners and more sophisticated meals

When casual wine drinkers think of Australian wine, they probably think of the critter-laden labels of Yellow Tail and The Little Penguin, among others. And while large wine companies dominate the Australian list, there are also a great number of smaller producers creating highly-rated, award-winning wines.

The majority of Australian wine is produced in South Australia, with most of that (those “critter wines”) carrying a South Eastern Australia appellation. Subregions such as Barossa Valley, Coonawarra and McLaren Vale are home to smaller producers and higher quality wines. Victoria and New South Wales are also significant regions, and wines from Western Australia are reaching America in increasing numbers.

Though Shiraz is the grape most associated with Australia, they’ve also had great success with Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Riesling and Grenache.

Winemaker Description

‘Mollydooker’ is old Aussie slang for a left handed boxer and our Boxer always punches well above his Fruit Weight™. Did you notice he has two left-handed gloves?

The 2022 Boxer boasts a robust foundation of dark fruit, black cherries, moccha, and a hint of clove spice that comes alive in the glass. Its velvety texture delivers notes of fresh plum, balanced tannins, and a subtle touch of toasted oak, all of which enhance the richness of the fruit. This wine offers a complex experience with multiple layers that are sure to impress.

Winemaker Description

2020 Gnarly Dudes is an unctuous yet classic Barossa Valley Shiraz. This Barossa Valley Shiraz staple will be able to go anywhere with you.

Expert Review

91 Wine Spectator | There's lots to admire in this compact red, which offers dense, firm tannins and accents of Earl Grey tea, smoked paprika, bay leaf, blackberry, blueberry and a hint of sweet mint on the finish. Drink now.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2020 

The Wine Advocate 94 Points | The Barossa has the ability to convey a sense of place, dirt and air in the glass. The trick is to not get in the way—a cooper does not terroir make. Despite not being the dominant region in this blend (for specificity: McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Padthaway and Clare Valley), the Barossa makes a potent contribution. Here, in the 2020 Bin 28 Kalimna Shiraz, the concentrated, dry and warm vintage is on show and provides a splay of earthy, dense fruit, stretched over a framework of savory tannin. Despite Penfolds's reputation for big tannins/big oak, the fruit here overpowers both and streams out over the long finish. The heart of Barossa is here. Very good. Will get better. 

The Wine Spectator 94 Points | Ripe and generous, but the aromatics take this to the next level, with notes of cardamom, paprika and dried rose petal, plus touches of candied violet and cocoa powder, to complement the core of fleshy blackberry, black cherry and cassis. The tannins are dense but velvety, and this finishes with warm chocolaty notes. (MW)

Australian Wine Companion 92 Points | A McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley, Padthaway, Wrattonbully and Clare Valley sourced shiraz matured in American oak (7% new) for 12 months. Deep crimson in the glass, the wine initially comes across a little shy, showing itself in the traditional Penfolds 'house style' after some time in the glass. Plentiful black and plummy fruit depth with hints of spice, roasting meats, soy sauce, charcuterie, Old Jamaica chocolate, licorice and earth. Tenses somewhat on the medium-length finish.

Winemaker Description 

A beautiful structured medium-bodied Shiraz with juicy ripe plum and dark berry flavours. Has fine textures of sweet spice, new leather and a hint of savoury, refreshed with a juicy, plummy finish.

Winemaker Description 

Dark purple hue with a garnet rim. Complex aromas of black fruit, espresso, pine tar, molasses, olives and peppercorn. The elegant palate shows both fresh and dried blackberries, olallieberry and marionberry and a hint of eucalyptus.

Beautifully integrated and fresh on the palate; the finish is long and structured, the black tea-like tannins supported by lively acidity. Velvety soft. A suberb demonstration that Barossa Shiraz can have genuine finesse.

This Shiraz is everything a great wine should be – vibrant, smooth, rich and easy to drink. Flavour Rich and smooth, with juicy red berries and hints of vanilla and spice. Winemaker Description. 

Winemaker Description

Black crimson in color, this wine leaps from the glass with powerful aromatics of blueberries, fresh plum, licorice and nuances of chocolate biscuit. The seamless texture is laced with fresh berry fruit, coffee, vanilla cream and warm spice, giving us a full-bodied Shiraz with an endless depth of flavor and great length.

Expert Review

Robert Parker 92 Points | Once you taste a few of a producer's wines side by side, you really start to get a feel for stylistic preference between warm vintages and cool ones. I surprise myself by saying here that I prefer the warmer vintages at Mollydooker (this does not make it right) because the sunshine and ease with which ripening can occur in a warmer year really seems to suit the plush, high-octane style being proliferated here. So, this 2021 Blue Eyed Boy Shiraz is far more on the blue fruit spectrum than the 2020, which has a complex array of sweet/savory/spice characters. The detail here errs to blackberry, blood plum and resin—a spicy, full-bodied Shiraz. Not for the faint of heart.

Winemaker Notes

Winemaker Description

A dark, rich purple in color, this wine is from vines grown in ancient Cambrian earth, formed from Cambrian rocks that are over 500 million years old. A limited edition Shiraz dedicated to the first born children of the founders, this wine boasts aromas of cassis and blackberry. The palate is full-bodied yet refined with perfect integration of French oak and decadent notes of dark fruits, tobacco, and mocha. The finish is long with black pepper overtones, red chili and soft tannins, which give this wine a finish that lingers long after it's been enjoyed. 

Pair with a roast leg of lamb, barbecue, and aged hard cheese.

Winemaker Description

St Henri is a time-honoured and alternative expression of shiraz, and an intriguing counterpoint to Grange. It is unusual amongst high quality Australian red wines as it does not rely on any new oak. Released for the first time by Penfolds in the early 1950s (first commercial vintage 1957), it gained a new lease of life in the 1990s as its quality and distinctive style became better understood. Proudly, a wine style that hasn’t succumbed to the dictates of fashion or commerce.

Expert Reviews

Wine Spectator 93 Points | Juicy blueberry and huckleberry fruit flavors at the core are accented by black and red licorice details, with dense, grippy tannins and notes of black pepper and Earl Grey tea. Impressive for its concentration and focus, along with its muscular structure. Drink now through 2035. 284 cases imported.

Wine Advocate 97 Points | The 2018 St Henri Shiraz is a terrific effort, perhaps rivaling the top-flight wines under this label in 1976 and 1986. Remarkably fine and silky in texture yet simultaneously dense and concentrated, it showcases the amazing fruit harvested in 2018. Boysenberry, mulberry and mocha shadings all swirl together effortlessly in a whorl of full-bodied elegance, finishing long and effortless. Mainly Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale, it includes smaller amounts of fruit from Port Lincoln, Robe, Padthaway, Clare Valley and the Adelaide Hills, all aged 12 months in large old wooden vats.

Decanter 93 Points | A shift in emphasis for St Henri, with its gaze fixed on depth and seriousness rather than its familiar comforting embrace. With no new oak, it’s always a fruit-driven statement, but this time the rich, red earthy tones are clouded over by a deep well of purple and blue fruit flavours. As a result, it appears to have a broader frame than before, finishing a bit short for a wine of this stature, but still with lots of pleasing savoury grip on the finish. Released at AU$135. Drinking Window 2022 - 2050.

James Suckling 99 Points | A great St. Henri and, although multi-regional, this is very much a wine that speaks of the Barossa Valley, with aromas of ripe blackberries and red plums that are so fresh, together with tobacco, young-leather, earth, chocolate, coal-smoke and tarry accents. Effortless depth on the palate with summer berries, framed in fine, alabaster-like tannins that are underscored with discreet power. So long and captivating. A blend of Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, Port Lincoln, Robe, Padthaway, Clare Valley and Adelaide Hills. Drink over the next decade or more. Screw cap.Vinous 95 points Dark, bright-rimmed violet color. A wild, highly complex bouquet evokes spice-tinged black/blue fruits, pipe tobacco, savory herbs, potpourri and olive paste. Weighty and yet energetic in style, offering mineral-driven bitter cherry, cassis, chewing tobacco and exotic spice flavors that turn sweeter through the back half. Round, slowly building tannins give framework to a very long, smoky finish that echoes the cherry and tobacco notes.