Peter van den Besselaar

9.0

vintage 2015 | — a month ago

John Van Trijp

9.6

Weekend with Friends and average wines…😎 — 5 months ago

John Pavlovich

9.3

Opened for my 80th birthday. From a magnum, fully mature, still plenty of freshness, perfect balance, full body with excellent presence in the mouth, so tasty, it really went well with roasted suckling pig dinner. — 6 months ago

Richard Portes

9.1

Still looks young, high acidity keeps it fresh. So different from an Hermitage! — 8 months ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.0

Dark Ruby color with aromas of ripe berry fruit and herb spice aromas. On the palate flavors of ripe cherry and blackberry with leather and tobacco notes. Dusty tannins, medium+ finish ending with toasty herb mineral spice. — 8 months ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.0

Blend of 69% Shiraz, 16% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, sourced from McLaren Vale, deep Ruby color with aromas of berry fruits and sweet spice. On the palate flavors of blackberry and cherry with notes of vanilla, spice, licorice and tobacco. Fine tannins, medium+ finish ending with fruit, sweet spice and earthy notes. — 9 months ago

Bob McDonald

9.2

See previous note from January 2022. Has lost its primary red fruited characters of raspberry and strawberry from its youth. More musky and earthy these days. From 72 year old Grenache vines in the Old McDonald vineyard in McLaren Vale. Steve Pannells winemaking touch still evident with excellent material - a great combination. — 4 years ago

Diane Heyboer

8.9

Had the 2022 in February of 2026. Blackberry and dark cherry with a barrel forward character on the nose. Not super tannic- berry/cherry throughout. Short finish with hints of tannin on the end. — 5 months ago

with Matthew, Ethan and 2 others

Vitaly Domnenko

9.1

Bm+. Tm. Am. Fm+. — 6 months ago

Bob McDonald

9.5

A highly awarded Grenache from McLaren Vale made by the talented Peter Fraser. Sweet red earthy fruits but not overly raspberry as Aussie Grenache often is. Has a lovely sweet smooth texture. James Halliday awarded this wine his Wine of the Year in 2020 and 99 points. Vines planted in 1946 in ancient sandy soils ideal for this Grenache. If not Australia’s best Grenache then certainly in the conversation. The main reason we drank this wine a few days ago was to remember Peter Fraser who sadly passed away unexpectedly in a tragic house fire. — 7 months ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.0

Dark Ruby color with aromas of berry fruit with earthy spice tones. On the palate cherry and blackberry flavors with pepper spice, tobacco and cacao on fine dusty tannins. Medium+ finish, nice mouthfeel, ending with fruit and an oak mineral character. — 9 months ago

Shay A

9.2

Got for a steal locally. 15ys on an Aussie Grenache had me curious how it was holding up…

Followed over a few hours from bottle. It could have maybe been double decanted to get some quick air to it as it is still rocking quite the tannin, but it smoothed out quickly. Ripe purple and black fruits (roasted plum, blackberries, black currant) aromatically mixed with sweet tobacco. No menthol/eucalyptus but a distinct sweet note on the mid-palate. Dark, juicy, ripe fruits with old fig jam. Age starting to show itself at the finish. Alcohol started to poke out as it warmed. Drink up. — 10 months ago

Fish Tony Fisher

9.5

Never ever disappoints. Beautiful wine. As good as you get for $30. — 5 years ago

Nicholas Cotton

10

With Jay and Ted — 5 months ago

John Pavlovich

9.6

Opened for my 80th birthday. Wow, at its peak, deep cherry colour, fresh, vibrant, complex with amazing depth and flavours, a long aftertaste. So tasty. — 6 months ago

Peter van den Besselaar

9.3

Vintage 2016 | Opaque and dark. Multi layered bouquet to dream of: dark pepper, plum, leather, tobacco, Scottish pipe tobacco, everything in a rich, chic style. Chocolate in taste, rondeur as well as some unbending characteristics. A real treat. — 6 months ago

Paul St Clair

9.0

Powerfull well rounded blueberry and black currants. Soft tannins carrying pepper leather and tobacco. Well balanced with acidity that rounds out the red fruit flavors the wine is abundant with. — 8 months ago

Nagib Nasr

9.4

One of my most favorite wines. Thank you Ted — 9 months ago

with Ted

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

First, if you haven’t had this producers wines at 15-20 years of age, you’re missing some spectacular juice. I bought this at auction for $38-$40 a bottle and because I was unaware of its storage, I was prepared to short decant it. Well…until I pulled the cork, smelled it and saw the color. This nearly 20 year old bottling is still big but with nice integration & evolution. I would say it has another 5-8 years of good life in it.

The palate fruit is ruby, ripe and lush; blackberries, boysenberries, black raspberries, dark cherries, black plum. Mid berry cola, dark chocolate to pudding, mocha powder, wet clay, light, black pepper, Asian spice, dry-ish tobacco, black licorice, some dry herbs-sage dominate, limestone, dry top soil, dry brush, used leather, sandlewood, fresh to slightly withering, dark, purple, red florals set/framed in violets and lavender. The acidity is near perfect. The well balanced, structured, knitted finish is excellent and lingers minutes. Steal for the price. Another excellent gourmet burger wine. Beef Patties from El Salchichero. — 3 years ago

George Hesse

9.0

This is another blend. But this time it’s Cab, Syrah and Mourvèdre. — 5 years ago