Krondorf 121 Settlers Barossa Valley Shiraz The 121 Settlers Old Vine Shiraz is sourced from a single site at the cooler southern extremity of Barossa, in St. Jakobi, abutting the western ridge of the Lyndoch sub-zone. Here, a conflation of red clay and loam promotes earlier ripening, a mitigating factor against inclement weather and the growing risk of early season frosts that Climate Change has foisted upon us. As importantly these dense soils imbue the wines with a firm tannic carriage, ensuring passage to greater complexity in the cellar, while serving as a structural harness for typically exuberant Barossan fruit. The average age of the vines is in excess of 35 years, with gnarled octogenarian survivors among them. Yields are inherently low as the established root systems reach deep below the soils substrata in search of water and the requisite nutrients drawn through it. Yet the fruit that is produced is immaculate: vibrant, concentrated and firmly stamped with the regional postcode of generosity. The winemaking is dutifully sensitive, chaperoning the fruit from vineyard to bottle with minimal intrusion: gravity feeds, gentle pigeage and 16-18 months in used, rather than new, oak. The result is one of dark fruit allusions from plum to blackberry, underlain by a potpourri of spice including black pepper, clove and star anise, all melded to a pungent thread of mineral. The oak is apparent, but only as an adjunct to propel the finish long. As with many Barossan greats, the fruit weight allows for early appeal, albeit, this is a wine that will easily cellar for 15 years onwards.

FORJAS DEL SALNES Finca Genoveva Caino, Rias Baixas

Casa Castillo Monastrell, Jumilla Casa Castillo Jumilla is hand-picked and fermented wild in tank, before spending eight to nine months in larger format, neutral French oak. Think pulpy blueberry, raspberry bon bon, violet, smoked meats and a twine of sage-brushed tannins, corralling the flavours into a long corridor across the palate. The wine is full-bodied, to be sure. Yet the gentle approach to extraction and employment of a substantial percentage of whole berries in the mix ensures a lightness of touch, a mid-weighted feel and the sense of the fruit popping through the mouth. Versatile at the table, this is an everyday wine for the most assiduous drinker to the layperson.

Casa Castillo El Molar Garnacha, Jumilla Casa Castillo El Molar Garnacha Jumilla is borne of sandy clay and gravel, differentiating itself from the pack by virtue of its Garnacha makeup. Hand-harvested and fermented wild in concrete, with a finishing of 14 months in assorted large format French wood. With consistent scores in the mid-90s across vintages from the Wine Advocate and James Suckling, this rich wine bares a striking resemblance to the brawn, core of kirsch, tapenade accents and long-limbed garrigue-soaked tannins of fine Châteauneuf du Pape, at a fraction of the price. It is now wonder, as the fragmented rocky soils are virtually interchangeable.

Casa Castillo Pie Franco Monastrell, Jumilla Casa Castillo Pie Franco Monastrell is hewn of concentrated fruit from 75 year vines, planted on calcareous soils of sand and clay, hand-picked and fermented in stone lagars where extraction is achieved by foot treading, with whole-bunches intact. Élévage takes place in neutral 500L French demi-muids. A wine that consistently scores in the high 90s, this received a 96 in the Wine Advocate and 95 from Vinous in accordance with its reputation as one of Spains finest wines and arguably, the worlds greatest example of Monastrell/Mourvèdre/Mataro. The fruit is of a darker persuasion, with scents of black rock, cinder, clove and rosemary to accompany. As always, despite the capacious nature of the wine, there is an uncanny stream of pungent mineral freshness, beautifully articulated tannins and the breadth of larger format wood, tucking in the seams and towing the flavours long.

Head Wilton Hill Shiraz Barossa Ranges Wilton Hill is comprised of an old vine vineyard, perched atop the Barossa Ranges as it encroaches on the Eden Valley. The soil, a complex polyglot of sandy loams, limestone and ferrous ironstone over a substrata of mottled quartz. The geology is arguably more intrinsic to the makeup of the wine than the variety, or maker Alex Heads deft hand. This is top- drawer Barossa Grand Cru speaking. Make no mistake! Think a swirl of dark fruits, aromas of iodine, lilac and violet, punctuated with a swab of tapenade-encrusted tannins. Dig deeper and there are scents of smoked meats, thyme, lavender and mocha, trailing across a peppery trail of freshness that tows this full-bodied wine long. Sumptuous gear that is ready for an aggressive decant, or extended time in the cellar.

HARRISON WINES Fleur De La Lune Grenache, Barossa Valley