6 smashing McLaren Shiraz for you to give the old tonsil test. The highlights? Dandelion’s 97 point Firehawk Farm Shiraz, which is one of the very best Shiraz made in McLaren Vale; Haselgrove’s rich and super smooth Catkin Shiraz; and Martin’s Limited 97 point Shiraz. The Curtis Small Batch is a ripper too, old vines and 96 points- black as the ace of spades and smooth as a smoothie. No filler here, these are all superb!
95pts Sam Kim, 94pts Ray Jordan, 92pts Ken Gargett
Rich, decadent and smooth. Dark and milk chocolate, black fruits, plums, spice and cedar. Exceptional concentration and fine tannins to round things out. A great drink now which will cellar magnificently as well.
97pts Sam Kim, 96pts Ken Gargett, 96pts Kim Brebach, 96pts Winestate Magazine, Gold - CWSA
The Martins has maintained the exceptionally high standard it set with the 2018 vintage. Fruits are blacks and blues, with blueberries, blackberries, olive tapenade, cedar and vanilla populating a powerful and long palate. The tannins are polished, waxy and plentiful. The overall package, outstanding!
2 x Gold Medals, 97pts Kim Brebach, 91pts James Halliday, 93pts The Real Review
This is just the second release of Firehawk Farm which is produced from Dandelion’s finest vineyard. There is mammoth concentration of fruit here and perfect integration of fruit, oak and acid. Closed on opening, this morphs into an absolute stunner as is breathes and opens over several days. Sweet fruit, searing acid, savoury complexities, chocolate, graphite and blue fruits are all on show along with earthiness, cedar and plenty of tannin. This might just be the McLaren Vale’s best Shiraz.
96pts Winestate, 95pts Wine Showcase Mag, 95pts Sam Kim
A huge wine made from top quality fruit aged in spicy French oak. The result is full throttle Shiraz elegantly bridled by fine tannins and spice, which together season black fruits, cherries and plums. Drink now or any time over the next coupl’a decades.
A beautifully sweetly fruited McLaren Vale Shiraz designed for drinking any time over the next decade. We found rich black fruits, liquorice, spice and a little dark chocolate. This is an engaging and relatively easy to drink wine, with a powerful core of fruit, a long finish and fine tannins.
96pts Sam Kim, 95pts Kim Brebach, 94pts Ken Gargett
A black, plush, and full-bodied Shiraz made from 80-year-old vines. Exceptional fruit intensity here, and weight of black fruits on the palate. Opulence is balanced by judicious acidity and there’re plenty of tannins driving through to an epic conclusion. Decant if you are going to enjoy now, otherwise cellar!
#html-body [data-pb-style=FRIS3JP]{justify-content:flex-start;display:flex;flex-direction:column;background-position:left top;background-size:cover;background-repeat:no-repeat;background-attachment:scroll;border-style:none;border-width:1px;border-radius:0;margin:0 0 10px;padding:10px}#html-body [data-pb-style=AF7ES7G]{border-style:none;border-width:1px;border-radius:0;margin:0;padding:0}Less than 40km south of Adelaide, McLaren Vale is another one of South Australia's renowned Shiraz producers, accounting for roughly 50% of grapes crushed annually. The climate is markedly different from the Barossa, being much more Mediterranean with four clear seasons ... Read Full Article