The world-renowned Riesling Clos Ste. Hune is produced from 40 year old vines in a 1.38 hectare parcel (3.4 acres) located within the Rosacker grand cru. Some of the finest Rieslings I have ever tasted have hailed from this tiny plot. The 1995 Riesling Clos Ste. Hune remains unevolved and tight but is certainly one the greatest wines to have been crafted from this tiny monopole (solely owned vineyard). As always, my score reflects what I was able to perceive in the wine, yet I am convinced its mind-numbing richness and concentration are holding back enormous reserves. A profound nose of creamed herbs, minerals, candied limes, and poached pears leads to a super-rich, dry, viscous core of fruit. Layer upon layer of stones, gravel, spiced apples, and liquid minerals captivate the palate for well over a minute. This is a riveting wine, with untold complexity, power, and precision. Projected maturity: 2005-2015+. Wine Advocate (123), Jun 1999, Pierre Rovani
The 1982 Riesling Clos Ste Hune is orange-golden in color with intense and minty stone fruit aromas; it is not that brilliant and slightly austere. Very elegant and intense, slightly bitter and austere, quite drying, rather short and not the best bottle, obviously. 221, The Wine Advocate, 30 Oct 2015, Stephan Reinhardt
The 2019 Cheval des Andes had a more reductive vinification and élevage, making the wine a bit shy and in need of time to open up, as one of their objectives was to make it more age-worthy. Another objective is to get to a 50/50 blend of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon, which they achieved in this vintage for the first time, going back to the initial character of the wine that was the idea of Argentinean winemaker Roberto de la Mota; so, they are closing the circle and going back to the initial idea, with more implication from the Cheval Blanc team. This is the first vintage fully under the charge of the new French winemaker, Gerald Gabillet, who fermented by plot, isolating some specific parts of the vineyard, like the borders where you tend to get higher yields because of the irrigation. It matured in 225- and 400-liter oak barrels and in oak vats. They used more barrels and vats from Stockinger, which they like and rotate; the wine spends an average of 13 to 14 months in oak, but some lots get 11 months and others get 16. 2019 was a mild vintage, cooler than 2017 and warmer than 2018, with rain at the right time, which helped to avoid hydric stress, and without extremes (which they had in 2020 with three weeks of extreme heat). The wine is young and tender and a bit oaky, which Gerald attributed to the reductiveness; it's ripe without excess, with around 14.2% alcohol, mellow acidity and velvety tannins. There's more Cabernet here, so the aromatic expression can be something between 2017 and 2018, but Cabernet marks the palate a lot and makes the wine more age-worthy, as it provides the structure and length that the Malbec lacks. So, the wine might be less accessible when young and should develop slowly in bottle. It's tasty and supple and has the ingredients and the balance for what they are aiming for. In the following vintages, they follow this path, and Gabillet feels that having more precision allows the wines to reflect the differences between vintages better. They keep producing around 100,000 bottles. It was bottled in late January 2021. The way they want to describe the wine is the Argentinean expression of Cheval Blanc. And I can only agree. Luis Gutierrez, Wine Advocate,
This is a plush, rich Cheval with blueberry and floral aromas and flavors. Hints of tar and fresh lavender. Full body. The depth and richness are impressive, as are the ripe yet fresh tannins. Very long and structured, yet controlled and in balance. This will be a great wine indeed. Release in September 2021. Drink after 2023. James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com
Incredible purity of fruit in the nose, offering crushed, perfectly ripe blackberries and currants with raspberries and citrus. Some black licorice, too. It’s full-bodied with density, precision and gorgeously fine tannins. Great length going on for minutes. A blend of mostly Chanares with some old-vine fruit from Marchiori and Sengeretti. Such precision to this. Tight now. Try after 2026. James Suckling, Mar 2021
The 30 year old Penfolds Great Grandfather Rare Tawny is pale tawny in color and has a more profound nose than the Grandfather or Father labels of this style. The nose presents some earthy notes that wrap a complex spiciness around a core of Christmas cake, dried fruits, milk chocolate and incense. It’s a huge wine in the mouth - very serious stuff - with tons of layers and racy acid line to carry the flavor through the very long finish that also has a pleasant minerality. The Wine Advocate, Oct 31, 2014, Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Boasting knockout aromas of herbal, floral, tea-like stems, sous bois, smoked meat and black cherries, the 2018 Sangreal Pinot Noir is a treat just to smell. On the palate, it's medium-bodied and silky textured, smooth and polished in feel, showing ample concentration and length on the finish, which adds hints of orange zest, cranberries and exotic spice. Complex, mouthwatering and elegant, it's a beauty to drink now and over the next 7-8 years. Issue 253 End of February 2021, The Wine Advocate, 27 Feb 2021, Joe Czerwinski
The Hill of Grace vineyard, in Eden Valley, comprises 13 separate blocks, six of which feed into the Hill of Grace Shiraz. The oldest block (0.56 hectares), known as "Grandfathers," was planted around 1860. The other blocks were planted in 1910 (0.33 hectares), 1951 (1.08 hectares), 1952 (0.7 hectares), 1956 (0.88 hectares) and 1965 (0.57 hectares). The 2018 Hill of Grace Shiraz was matured in a combination of new (20%) and seasoned (80%) oak hogsheads (83% French, 17% American) for 18 months prior to blending and bottling. On the nose, the 2018 vintage assists this wine in speaking clearly of its regional location: raspberry and licorice, coal dust, black tea and tobacco leaf. There are inflections of black truffle and bone broth, which always seem to emerge, however the wine is brighter and more focused than I have seen. It offers a beautiful, svelte display of fruit and tannin, with all things in harmony in the mouth. This is very long, as we would expect from the pedigree of this wine and the vineyard. It is concentrated and intense, sinewy, elegant and powerful—a wine for the future generation. The Wine Advocate, Apr 06, 2023, Erin Larkin
The mulberry and vanilla-scented 2017 Ares Shiraz is a full-bodied Barossa Shiraz, with sufficient structure to support at least 15 years of aging. Dark purple and saturated in color, it shows some faint herbal nuances as well—enough to keep the fruit from being monolithic or boring, not enough to be a distraction. The tannins are rich and ripe, imparting a velvety texture on the palate and lingering as a soft dustiness on the long finish. End of July 2020, The Wine Advocate, 31 Jul 2020, Joe Czerwinski
Ripe and silky, the 2017 Bella's Garden Shiraz boasts oodles of black cherries layered with loamy-earthy notes. It's full-bodied and expansive but stays balanced, with supple tannins lingering on the finish. June 2019 Week 2, The Wine Advocate, 12 Jun 2019, Joe Czerwinski
The full-bodied, opulent 2016 Carnival of Love Shiraz kicks off with scents of mint, raspberries, plums and dark chocolate. Those notes unfurl across the palate in slow-moving, velvety waves of flavor, picking up hints of anise, cinnamon and vanilla on the lingering finish. It's one intense, languorous rush of flavor and richness. The Wine Advocate, Sep 26, 2018, Joe Czerwinski
Torbreck's 2015 The Laird boasts explosive aromas of Christmas spices, ripe plums, vanilla, hickory smoke and maple syrup. It's a big wine, loaded with fruit and oak, full-bodied, rich and velvety, adding hints of toasted coconut and cinnamon streusel on the long, almost dessert-like finish. For a more savory experience, age it a decade or so before pulling a cork. The Wine Advocate, Nov 28, 2019, Joe Czerwinski
Rich, concentrated and intense, the 2014 Grange delivers exactly what we've come to expect from this Penfolds icon wine. It's full-bodied, velvety in feel and loaded with plummy fruit, framed in vanilla and cedar. Dense, powerful and tannic, it should prove to be long lived, even by Grange standards. Gago doesn't rate the vintage overall that highly, but he says the selection this year for Grange was a bit more stringent and that production levels were just average. October 2018 Penfolds New Releases, The Wine Advocate, 5 Oct 2018, Joe Czerwinski
This bottle was opened in front of me and served without decanting. Containing 4% Cabernet Sauvignon and with a deep garnet-purple color, the 2014 Shiraz St Henriz has a relatively shy nose of black plums, black cherries and mulberries with nuances of underbrush, fruit cake and damp soil. The full-bodied palate has satisfying richness, with firm, rounded tannins supporting the earthy fruit layers, finishing with good depth and persistence. Wine Advocate (233), 1st Nov 2017, Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2013 Amon Ra has youthfully toned-down notes of blackcurrants, blackberry preserves, plums and cracked pepper with nuances of licorice, dark chocolate, cedar and black earth. The palate has wonderful balance and elegance for its commendable concentration and fullness, with tons of muscular fruit and spice layers framed by grainy tannins and just enough freshness, finishing with great persistence. 219, The Wine Advocate, 29 Jun 2015, Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Very deep purple-black in color, the 2012 Amon Ra reveals intense notes of blackcurrant cordial, blackberry compote and licorice with nuances of cloves, allspice, chocolate box and salami as well as a whiff of espresso. The 100% Shiraz palate offers a beast of a wine that is densely packed with black fruit and baking spice flavors and is supported with firm, grainy tannins and crisp acid through to a finish with excellent persistence. Drink it 2015 to 2025+. 211, The Wine Advocate, 27 Feb 2014, Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Deep purple-black in color, the 2010 Amon-Ra is very closed on the nose showing pure black fruits, chocolate and licorice with just a touch of loam. Full-bodied and densely packed, the voluptuous palate is framed by firm, fine tannins and a crisp acid line. It has a long, well-balanced finish. Drink it from 2014-2026+. 205, The Wine Advocate, 28 Feb 2013, Lisa Perrotti-Brown
A blend of Langhorne Creek and McLaren Vale fruit, the 2010 Blue Eyed Boy Shiraz presents a very deep purple black color and is profoundly scented of warm black berries, blueberry pie filling, licorice and cloves with hints of Chinese five spice, mocha and cedar. Very rich, powerful and very full bodied, the concentrated fruit is well balanced by a medium to firm level of rounded tannins and lively acid. It has a very long milk chocolate and coconut laced finish. Give this wine another year for the oak to marry and drink it 2013 to 2020+. 199, The Wine Advocate, 23 Dec 2011, Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Deep garnet-colored with a hint of purple, the 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon presents pronounced cassis, warm blackberry and spiced plum aromas with hints of dried mint, lavender, violets, cigar boxes and Chinese five spice. Medium to full-bodied with great poise and expression even at this primary, youthful stage, it has a firm level of fine-grained tannins and a lively backbone of acid through the finish with great length and depth. Approachable now, it should drink best 2015 to 2024+. The Wine Advocate, Aug 29, 2013, Lisa Perrotti-Brown
The 2010 Grange is a 4% Cabernet Sauvignon and 96% Shiraz blend made from Barossa Valley, Clare Valley, Adelaide Hills, McLaren Vale and Magill Estate fruit that was aged 17 months in 100% new American oak hogsheads. Very deep purple-black in color, this is classic Grange - amongst the finest produced - replete with fresh, vibrant and youthful black fruit notes showing some blueberry aromas and accents of camphor, anise and the slightest floral hint plus a whiff of oak in the background to lend a cedar-laced lift to this textbook Shiraz nose. Medium to full-bodied in the mouth, it is very taut and finely constructed showing typically firm, grainy, uniform tannins, great concentration and wonderful persistence on the finish. If I have any very slight complaint of this near perfect wine it is that it seems a little too clinical and appears to speak less of the land and the heart of South Australia and more of the very skilled winemaking than did the Grange from the magical 2008 vintage. eRobertParker.com (215), Oct 2014, Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Very deep purple-black in color and showing an attractive nose of warm blackcurrants, blueberries and licorice with a complex undercurrent of mocha, cedar, menthol and grilled meat, the full-bodied 2010 St Henri Shiraz is relatively rich in the mouth, offering tons of fruit structured by firm, fine tannins and refreshing acid. It finishes with great persistence. Drink it 2015 to 2030+. eRobertParker.com (211), Feb 2014, Lisa Perrotti-Brown
Simultaneously incredibly rich and incredibly fragrant, the 2010 RunRig seems capable of aging at least another 15 years. Scents of violets and red berries combine with darker fruit, ample dried spice and hints of savory meatiness. It's a complete wine and one of the ultimate expressions of Barossa Valley Shiraz. The Wine Advocate, Sep 01, 2018, Joe Czerwinski
Medium to deep garnet-purple in color, the nose on the 2009 Hill of Grace is a little closed, though it reveals notes of warm black plums, blackberry coulis and cloves with subtle nuances of dried Provence herbs, forest floor and lavender. Medium to full-bodied, it possesses layers of medium to full-bodied black fruit and earth-laced flesh elegantly structured by a medium to firm level of finely grained tannins, nicely balanced acid and a long finish. Drink it now to 2026+. 211, The Wine Advocate, 27 Feb 2014, Lisa Perrotti-Brown