An aged example of top-end Barossa shiraz, this svelte beast of a wine proves that the region’s power can be harnessed in service to finesse – and that not every ‘cult’ producer makes stereotypically boozy, brash wines.
An aged example of top-end Barossa shiraz, this svelte beast of a wine proves that the region’s power can be harnessed in service to finesse – and that not every ‘cult’ producer makes stereotypically boozy, brash wines.
The fourth release of this variety from the biodynamic Yangarra, the surprisingly savoury, salty depth of this wine shows how quickly they have mastered this recent arrival.
This is a decidedly smashable and crunchy light red, all vibrant fruit with a little spicy herbal edge – but there’s some seriously clever winemaking technique at work under the hood here.
How’s this for a bold statement? ‘Una Vita’ takes Ricca Terra’s dedication to the much-derided Riverland to the next level, with a fine-wine level of viticultural and winemaking detail – and a matching price point. And it delivers… Beeswaxy aromatics mingle with flavours of lemon barley, bread and butter.
A heady riot of unusual flavours that demonstrates why a handful of wine-lovers adore savagnin that has been matured under a ‘veil’ of flor yeast.
A Barossa red with a French name that drinks like a pinot noir? Mais oui. This bright, crunchy blend of three Mediterranean varieties is a dangerously drinkable departure from the Barossa norm.
In ancient Rome, the phrase Nil caput quoerere – ‘to search for the source of the Nile’ – was used as an idiom to describe attempting the impossible. While Scott McGarry’s wines under the Source of the Nile label don’t strictly speaking attempt the impossible, there is definitely a hint of the Quixotic about this project, which sees McGarry commute from his home in northern New South Wales to the Barossa Valley every year for vintage, where he makes wine from fruit sourced from all over Australia. Over two releases, each consisting of a minuscule three cuvées, McGarry has established himself as one of Australia’s most interesting natural/lo-fi winemakers. Largely self-taught – with some help along the way from Jilly Wines’ Jared Dixon – McGarry’s wines speak of the wild magic that can happen when quality fruit meets an untamed and somewhat untrained maker.
Starting a new wine project in a region as storied as the Barossa Valley means taking a position in relation to its traditions. For most winemakers, the choice is between tearing up the region’s rulebook and scandalising the traditionalists – as a cohort of young vignerons did in the Barossa roughly a decade ago – or leaning in to the region’s reputation. But there is a third way: honouring history and tradition, while respectfully updating the elements that no longer resonate with the general public. It’s a tough needle to thread, but Paul Thomas’s Barossa project Tribus does so with aplomb. Thomas crafts a tight lineup of approachable wines from Barossa stalwarts shiraz, grenache, and mataro, with a little cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc thrown in for good measure, alongside a riesling from the Watervale subregion of the nearby Clare Valley.
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