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WORLDS APART WINES Blewitt Springs Grown on Sands Made With Whole Bunches Grenache, McLaren Vale

Tuck into an opulent Gold-medal McLaren Vale Shiraz with 93pts and 94pts, brimming with regional richness and complexity from the perfectly-sited vineyards of Dowie Doole, now in the confident and skilled hands of winemaker Chris Thomas. “Sweetly ripe with attractive complexity, the wine shows blackberry, raspberry, toasted spice, and hazelnut aromas on the nose, leading to a flavoursome palate that's succulent and plump. Generous and beautifully rounded with layers of polished tannins, finishing sturdy and lingering. 93pts.” (Sam Kim, Wine Orbit). Of the previous vintage Ken Gargett WinePilot wrote: “Wines like this leave no question that Shiraz is divinely suited to the McLaren Vale region. This is from the Blewitt Springs and Tatachilla sub-regions…” Campbell Mattinson calls it: "…a warm-hearted Shiraz from McLaren Vale with dark chocolate, asphalt, black licorice and peppercorn characters flowing evenly through the palate… rich and satisfying…" Founders Drew Dowie and Norm Doole, both visionary and passionate about sustainability, have always been nuts about McLaren Vale geology – the sandy soils of Blewitt Springs and the ancient rocks of Tatachilla in particular. They paired up to form DOWIE DOOLE in 1995, and then, in 2015, sold it to their chief winemaker and fellow devotee Chris Thomas, who has worked at many top wineries including Fox Creek and Serafino Wines in McLaren Vale – as well as in Burgundy, France. Norm and Drew own neighbouring estates, one in each locale mentioned above, and both have sold one of their premium vineyards to ‘DD’ in order to boost its overall potential. Norm Doole’s California Road vineyard and Drew Dowie’s Tintookie vineyard at Blewitt Springs.

Munda Syrah Kaurna Country Blewitt Springs (McLaren Vale) Syrah Munda chooses minimal intervention in the winery, second and third use oak regimes to showcase Munda, and prefers to bottle relatively early to reflect the brightness of their wines. Sourced from grapes grown on Kaurna Country, this Syrah is handpicked, partially destemmed and fermented in wild yeast for 10 days to extract the optimal flavour. Vibrant fruit combines with notes of red flowers, cacao and layers of cooking spice. A medium to full-bodied wine, the Syrah expresses cherry, blueberry, and plum on the palate with the quintessential biscuity tannins of Blewitt Spring lingering on the long finish.

An elegant wine with perfectly ripened blackberry and plum fruit, liquorice and hints of dark chocolate. Maturation in high quality French and American oak has created a complex layered finish with fine tannins and notes of vanilla and spice. Sourced from vines planted in 1947 this wine was matured in a combination of French and American oak for 18 months. Expressive aromatics of liquorice, dark chocolate and blackberries emerge from the glass with underlying toasty vanillin oak and spice. Full bodied, rich and velvety in its mouthfeel the palate delivers a generous flavour profile of ripe blackberries, liquorice and dark chocolates over some smoky vanillin cedar, a touch of mocha and spice. Silky smooth, polished tannins only enhance the wines sumptuous qualities. Superb length with a long aftertaste of blackberries, liquorice, dark chocolate, toasty vanillin oak and spice.

This alluring and unashamedly bold Shiraz has hints of spiced plums, blackberry jam and cherry all at the fore and finishes with coffee cream, licorice and vanilla. Full bodied with vibrant berry fruit characteristics, yet elegant with restrained tannins, resulting in a soft mouthfeel. This Boxer is sure to be a knockout!

Vibrant in colour the nose shows plum and berry fruit with spice pepper and well integrated oak. The palate has good fruit weight with attractive berry flavours and a fine tannin finish.

Another impeccably good offering from Chester Osborne combining rich and voluptuous McLaren Vale Shiraz with lifted fragrant Viognier. d'Arenberg is one of the pioneers of this style, the 'Magpie' continues to go from strength to strength.

Made by Corrina Wright, a sixth generation member of the Oliver family, this is McLaren Vale Shiraz to the extreme. There's bold chocolate and blackberry flavours, a hint of pepper and smokey overtones. The alcohol sits at the higher end of the spectrum and there's plenty of vanilla oak, but the fruit intensity pulls it all together to produce a superbly balanced wine.