Noon Winery has become a cult figure in the wine world due to their opulent red wines that are known for their concentration and power. Not beholden to the trend of lower-alcohol, leaner styles, Drew and Raegan Noon produce block-buster reds that are in huge demand the world over. Their Reserve Shiraz is so highly thought of, it sits in the Outstanding category in Langton's Classification of Australian Wine. With fruit sourced from the '20 Rows' block in Langhorne Creek owned by the Borrett family, this is a Shiraz of serious weight and body. Still very young, aromas of violets, lavender and herbs are balanced with traditional fruit notes of blueberries and spice. Big and fleshy on the palate while still showing supreme complexity, this is a wine that needs some decanting before enjoying the saturating flavours that Noon can offer.

This wonderfully elegant Shiraz shows intense, pristine, blackberry fruit and ripe, silky tannins. It almost has a Pinot Noir elegance to it and, luckily, the quality of future vintages will only be getting better too as Voyager's new clones come on line.

Meshach William Burge was Grant's great grandfather and was a central figure in establishing the Burge family in the Barossa Valley. This Shiraz named in his honour is sourced from old vines, some nearing 100 years old, and shows aromas and flavours of complex swiss chocolate, savoury spices and red currant. Grant Burge's flagship shiraz will reward the patient cellarer with 20 years in the bottle in front of it.

WOLF BLASS WINES Platinum Label Medlands Vineyard Shiraz, Barossa Valley

Teusner Albert Shiraz is made from old vines in the northern Barossa; rich black fruits and tarry cassis with smoky undertones, the finish is long and luscious. Could easily be cellared for the medium term.

Proudly, a wine style that hasn’t succumbed to the dictates of fashion or commerce. St Henri is rich and plush when young, gaining soft, earthy, mocha-like characters as it ages. It is matured in old, 1,460 litre vats that allow the wine to develop, imparting minimal, if any oak character. Although a small proportion of Cabernet is sometimes used to improve structure, the focal point for St Henri remains Shiraz.

One of the benchmarks of Barossa Shiraz, Peter Lehmann's Stonewell is a classic example of the rich concentrated old vine style. While bold on the palate, there is always an inherent complexity to the Stonewell that enables it to be compared with all of the great Australian wines produced today.

High Sands Grenache is the flagship of the Yangarra winery. Its made with 100% Grenache and sourced from gnarly old bush vines that were planted in 1946 and situated at the highest altitude in their vineyard. The wine is intense, complex and expressive of type and place.

With plenty of blackberry, plum, mulberry and menthol-like fruit and fine, rusty, almost unyielding tannins, this is a strong, firm wine by Wendouree with plenty of lasting power. The Shiraz component derives from vineyard plots that include bush vine material. Parcels of very old vine Malbec bring further distinctiveness. The wine is vinified in open fermenters and matured for 12 months in new and used French oak.

Graveyard Vineyard is the jewel in the Brokenwood crown, responsible for the company's flagship wines. The vineyard was planted with Shiraz vines in 1970 - extremely heavy clay soils, yields are low, but fruit flavour is intense through employment of meticulous vinification techniques. Strong lifted aromas of sweet earth and dark cherry greet the olfactory senses. Oak features, but will soften and integrate given some patience. Initial flavours of dark chocolate and ripe plums are beautifully lashed to ripe tannins lending an edge of cedar.

McWilliam's Mount Pleasant Maurice O'Shea Shiraz continues lead the pack of great Hunter Valley Shiraz. A lovely return to old form, this Maurice has a striking purple hue to it in the glass. To the nose aromas of liquorice and spice with hints of cedar will beguile. Layers of complex flavours dance across the palate including savoury, spicy dark fruits like dark plums and cherries. A classic of classics.