-
98
/ 100
James Halliday's Wine Companion -
97
/ 100
Ned Goodwin MW -
97
/ 100
Gary Walsh
Red
Classification
Shiraz
Variety
2021
Vintage
750ml (Bottle)
Bottle Size
Australia
Country
South Australia, McLaren Vale
Region
14.0%
Alcohol %
5-10 Years
Cellaring
Scores
98 / 100"Native ferment with 16 days on skins; maturation in a 2300L oak vat. There really are no other wines that taste like the Koomilya shiraz triad, being utterly individual and beguiling wines of place. This, my pick of the vintage. The three block wines are kindred but aptly singular, this with some of the succulence and girth of the DC and the relative levity of the GT, bound with more spice and intense compression than either. Deep, brooding, almost bottomless, but it’s no cudgel. Dusky red fruits and florals, a deep red cherry scent, blood and iron, licorice, tar, turned humus-rich soil, dried hardy herbs, and an invigorating sour-fruit-flavoured twang escorting the supple fruit with sublimely fine, grapey tannins. It’s one heck of a wine. 98 points. Marcus Ellis, Wine Companion Aug 2024"
- James Halliday's Wine Companion
97 / 100
"This wine has iron-clad tension and rusty gristle set in firm relief against soaring florals, aromatic tea leaves, spices and boysenberries. The tannins are firm, but with such generosity to the fruit that the whole is immaculately poised. A glorious, absolutely unique expression of full-bodied shiraz. 97 points. Ned Goodwin, JamesSuckling.com MW March 2024"
- Ned Goodwin MW
97 / 100
"The three Shiraz wines from Koomilya are all pretty much equal in quality, I feel, but all have something different to say. The GT is perhaps the outlier, in terms of texture and flavour profile, but what a set of wines they are. And more importantly, they are sensitively made, so that vineyard is the headline act, not oak or other winemaking artifice. I wish there were more wines like them. Blackcurrant and blackberry coulis, aniseed, subtle gum leaf perfume, along with floral top notes, chamomile tea perhaps, dark chocolate and spice. It’s full bodied, but fresh, and it’s a little brighter and more vibrant in nature than the brooding DC, the tannin is rich and ferrous and melts in the mouth like high quality dark chocolate, and there’s an almost pippy cranberry crunch to acidity, and the finish is so long and beautifully textured. Wow. What a wine."
- Gary Walsh
Tasting Notes
A single block Shiraz from 49 year old vines grown on ancient, dark grey slaty siltstone rich in ironstone rubble, facing south- west at an altitude of 120m. The JC Block is named for Jill Cant, the previous owner, and was the first block Stephen worked with on the vineyardduring his tenure as Chief Red Winemaker at Hardys.
Hand harvested on the 3rd of March. Gently crushed and pumped to a large old oak fermenter acquired from a dear friend. Gently pressed after spontaneous fermentation and 14 days on skins. Settled in tank for 15 days before transfer to a two year old 2300L French oak vat for malolactic fermentation and extended maturation. Racked three times and bottled, unfined, on the 28th of October 2022.
Flavour Profile: It’s never easy to describe the assault of aromas and flavours from the JC block Shiraz. For Stephen, it’s the true indication of a great wine. The aromas seem to be everywhere all at once. Signature iodine, split red wood, clove, bay and dark cherries in syrup are backed up by Ribena, red liquorice, toasted rye and freshly ground black pepper.
Structure & Texture: Powerful tannins supported by the ferruginous flavours typical of Upper Tintara: cocoa, bitumen, terracotta, the Aussie bush, dark red fruits – Ionian purple and waves of dark blue – Luxury wine that seems to expand beyond the confines of the palate on an unending finish. - Stephen Pannell
Tasting Profile
- Light
- Full
- Low Tannin
- Tannic
- Sweet
- Dry
- Low Acidity
- High Acidity