This cool climate Shiraz is superb - enticing the drinker with spice, clove and red berry fruit aromas. The palate is rich and concentrated, paying scant homage to its cool climate origins.

Penfolds Bin 2 Shiraz Mataro (also known as Mourvèdre) has a history going back to 1960 when Penfolds made a traditional "Burgundy" style. Penfolds have always loved Mataro (Mourvèdre) for its fantastic ability to blend marvelously with traditional South Australian stalwarts like Shiraz. Adding luscious complexity and palate grip, the Bin 2 is aged in older oak to emphasise the spicy savouriness of Mataro (Mourvèdre) that complements the plush richness of Shiraz.

If you love your big, bold and brash Barossa Shiraz, then look no further. Michael Twelftree and Richard Mintz produce wine of utmost power and strength. Their Gnarly Dudes is a perfect example. Bold black and blue fruits dominate with a healthy smattering of oak to hold everything in place. Sumptuous!

Elegant and medium bodied, Indigene by Spinifex is a Shiraz Mataro blend typically displaying ripe red and black complemented by forest floor and savoury undertones hinting of the Old World. The fruit is sourced from selected vineyards averaging in age between 60-100 years, providing the blend with impressive intensity and depth of flavour. Following traditional vinification, the wine is aged in seasoned French oak.

The Shingleback D Block Reserve Shiraz is named for the Davey Block of the Davey Estate vineyard and is the personal expression of the McLaren Vale from the eyes of winemaker John Davey. True reserve wines, the D Block is only made in exceptional vintages just like this 2009. In the glass the wine has a colour that is impenetrable purple red. On the nose there are aromas of mulberry and blackberry that mingle with dusty cashew, milky chocolate (typical of McLaren Vale), spice and forest floor. There are tight, fine tannins to counter the bold, fresh fruit which results in an alluring and unmistakable wine that expresses the essence of the vine, the time and the place.

Planted in 2007, this 0.8-hectare vineyard is littered with volcanic rocks (hence the name) and lies on the plateau above the De La Terre slope—essentially making it a westerly extension of the Serré vineyard. It was originally planted with various clonal cuttings from Best’s and Tahbilk on a mix of rootstock and own roots. Holmes only uses the Best’s clone in this bottling today and the rest of the site has been grafted over to Chardonnay, giving Bannockburn a close-planted Chardonnay block, named Grigsby after Bannockburn’s long-standing vineyard manager. The fruit was fully destemmed in 2011, wild fermented with indigenous yeast and then spent 12 months in 1/3 new French puncheons and a second year in 5 year old barriques.

Greenock is a long standing subregion in the Barossa Valley known for rich, silken, dark-fruited wines. When you mix that terroir-driven history with a winery like Kalleske you have a match made in heaven. Able to fully utilise the deeply concentrated flavours produced by the Greenock fruit, the skilled team has bottle a full-bodied Barossa Shiraz that is overflowing with fruit, balanced tannins and seamless oak. Given some time and a nice decant and this single vineyard Shiraz will open up wonderfully.

Shadowfax have a knack for producing unique wines of great character and complexity. Premium parcels of Pinot Noir were carefully selected for their aromatics and texture. This is wine of grace and intrigue, each layer of complexity only revealing itself ever so gradually. A joy to drink.

Every so often there are parcels of wine that generate tremendous excitement amongst the winemakers at Schild Estate. They set this aside to make Prämie, the wine that defines the best of the vintage and the land on which it was grown. Intense primary fresh plum flavours show again on the palate, where they hold their presence all the way through to roll out soft and pillowy at the finish. A firmly present, but fine tannin framework provides just enough focus and lift for the fruit to ensure added complexity, but retaining vibrancy to the mouth flavours of this Shiraz.

Typical earthy Hunter Shiraz, with leather and tobacco notes.