AUTUMN 2026 WINE REVIEWS by Tyson Stelzer
94 POINTS // $35
St Hugo
EDEN VALLEY RIESLING
2024
The precision of St Hugo is on grand display in the excellent 2024 vintage, setting a style of accuracy and precision in granny smith apple, lemon and lime. Fruit concentration in perfect concert with acid drive make for a finish of persistence and determination.
94 POINTS // $90
KAESLER
WOMS SHIRAZ CABERNET SAUVIGNON
2022
In its big bottle, WOMS has long epitomised the rich and powerful end of the Shiraz Cabernet spectrum in the Barossa. Shiraz planted in 1961 and Cabernet in 1985 directly behind the winery deliver impressive depth of blackberry and cassis fruit, bathed in the milk chocolate of 18 months in 60 per cent new French oak barrels. Vibrant, cool season acidity and well-resolved tannins make this a vintage for the medium-term.
93 POINTS // $120
CAMINO
MARANANGA CABERNET SAUVIGNON
2023
Modern heavy bottle aside, there’s an old-fashioned integrity here that harks back to the great old Cabernets of the Barossa. I love the way the mild 2023 season has created a Cabernet more of frame than flesh, reinforced by maker Jason Barrette with 19 months in French oak hogsheads. Vines of 80 to 100 years of age have built a deep core of blackcurrant fruit, backed with the milk chocolate complexity and fine-grained tannins that epitomise Marananga.
93 POINTS // $28
DANDELION VINEYARDS
ENCHANTED GARDEN OF THE EDEN VALLEY RIESLING
2024
Dandelion’s three-hectare Enchanted Garden produced a pristine Riesling in the great 2024 harvest, with a core of classic granny smith apple, lemon and lime. Eighteen months on, it’s evolving in freeze-frame slow motion, just beginning to show the texture and first hints of preserved lemon and almond meal nuance of bottle age. Magnificent now, and with the acid line and length to promise a great future.
92 POINTS // $40
MECKLEN
OLD VINE GRENACHE
2023
From the personal vineyards of the talented Bernard Hickin (retired Jacob’s Creek Chief Winemaker), this is the product of a small clutch of vines more than 100 years of age in the Cockatoo Valley. It’s been sensitively matured in old French oak barrels, providing texture and fine-grained tannin structure, while upholding the juicy berry fruits that characterise Grenache.
97 POINTS // $850
TORBRECK THE FOREBEAR SHIRAZ 2020
The singularity of concentration that is Forebear is something to behold, a powerfully concentrated Shiraz that encapsulates the sheer magnitude of low-yielding vines of grand old age. It holds magnificent focus of blueberries, blackberries, liquorice and high cocoa dark chocolate, laced together with beautifully seamless and confident, supple, old-vine tannins. The persistence is ethereal, hovering steadfast for minutes.
96 POINTS // $76
YALUMBA THE TRI- CENTENARY ANCESTOR VINE BAROSSA GRENACHE 2024
The cool nights of 2024 birthed a delightfully fragrant and elegant Tri-Centenary of such pale hue that it will surely be chastised by the bigger-is-better Barossa brigade. Don’t miss its wonderful rose petal aromatics, its tangy morello cherry and wild strawberry profile, its enduring acidity and that super-fine tannin texture, thanks to an impossibly long maceration on skins. A grand tribute to Kevin Glastonbury’s daring manifesto.
95 POINTS // $305
HENTLEY FARM CLOS OTTO BAROSSA VALLEY SHIRAZ 2023
Hentley Farm’s G-Block in Seppeltsfield is in a purple patch in these mild vintages. I love the way it captures the dark fruit impact of western Barossa with more brightness, detail and integrity than ever. Satsuma plums, blackberries and black cherries meet liquorice, dark chocolate and even coffee and black olives. Almost two years in 55 per cent new French oak has resolved well-poised, fine-grained tannins that carry the finish long and strong. This is full-bodied Barossa Shiraz at it finest.
95 POINTS // $150
ELDERTON COMMAND SINGLE VINEYARD BAROSSA VALLEY SHIRAZ 2022
From a single block of 1894-planted Shiraz, harvested over several picks for consistent ripeness, this is classically a commanding expression of ripe Barossa Shiraz. The cool 2022 season sets a fine balance between juicy fruit, fine-grained tannins and dark chocolate French and American oak.
94 POINTS // $35
PEWSEY VALE 1961 BLOCK EDEN VALLEY RIESLING 2024
These old vines high in the Eden Valley evidently relished the cool and pristine 2024 season, and the result is one of the greats from this fabled site. Eighteen months on, I love its youthful vibrancy and energy, its precise lime, lemon and granny smith apple profile, the subtle texture of wild ferment and its crystalline flow of vibrant acidity. It’s beautifully composed from the outset and will go long in the cellar.
94 POINTS // $38
SPINIFEX ESPRIT 2022 GRENACHE
Grenache takes such a lead here that it could technically be simply labelled as Grenache, but a touch of Shiraz, Mataro and Cinsault kick above their weight in firming up a fine tannin scaffold around a core of impeccable wild strawberry and raspberry fruit. The result is a seriously crafted Barossa GSMC with a confident future in the cellar.
93 POINTS // $50
LAUGHING JACK BLOCK 6 MOPPA HILL SHIRAZ 2021
The altitude of the eastern slope of Moppa Hill in the cool 2021 vintage furnish a brightness and energy that keep the spicy black fruit depth of Barossa Shiraz lively. Two years in French oak hogsheads contributes its roasted almond and milk chocolate character without disrupting fruit purity.
93 POINTS // $55
MILLON ESTATE RESERVE BAROSSA GRENACHE 2024
From Eden Valley vines of more than 100 years of age, I admire the bright elegance and detail achieved in the cool 2024 harvest. It takes 50 per cent whole bunches in its stride (I would never have guessed!) rightfully upholding its focus on varietal purity of wild strawberries, raspberries, morello cherries and just the right touch of rhubarb. Fine tannins deliver tension, integrity and endurance.
93 POINTS // $60
PENFOLDS BIN 138 BAROSSA VALLEY GRENACHE SHIRAZ MATARO 2023
A wet growing season and moderate harvest proved particularly advantageous for grenache, producing a Bin 138 of structural harmony and longevity. Firm, fine tannins are neatly woven with bright acidity to elevate a core of red and black berry fruits, spice, pepper and nuances of curry. Fine-grained tannins direct a finish of impressive persistence. A Bin 138 for the cellar.
93 POINTS // $195
HENSCHKE CYRIL HENSCHKE EDEN VALLEY CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2021
From Stephen and Prue Henschke’s 1988 plantings in their Cyril Henschke vineyard, this is a vintage that embodies its place. Stephen said it didn’t need any softening, hence just 1 per cent Merlot. Quintessential Eden Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is infused with an air of eucalypt, bay leaf and cedar, set to a core of varietal blackcurrant fruit. Soft, supple, fine-grained tannins carry a friendly approachability unusual for such a cool season, yet with the stamina to age confidently for the medium-term.
92 POINTS // $33
GLAETZER BISHOP BAROSSA VALLEY SHIRAZ 2022
From Ebenezer vines of 35 to 120 years of age, this is a Barossa Shiraz that exemplifies what we love of Glaetzer’s touch: plush dark fruit, finely textured tannins and enticing gloss. It meets its brief of soft approachability, ready to drink right away.
92 POINTS // $35
EDEN HALL EDEN VALLEY GRÜNER VELTLINER 2024
Celebrating its 10th vintage, this is proof that Eden Hall’s Grüner vines are clearly in a happy place next to its Riesling at Springton. The cool 2024 season has given birth to a particularly elegant and tense rendition, with an endurance more common to its varietal neighbour. Wild lemon, lemon grass and crunchy pear are structured with bright, high-altitude acidity and just the right touch of finely-crafted phenolic bite.
92 POINTS // $75
Z WINE JULIUS BAROSSA VALLEY SHIRAZ 2022
There’s a refreshingly elegant restraint to this release, true to the cool 2022 season in the Barossa. Crunchy dark berry fruits are surrounded by milk chocolate oak and firm, fine tannins that will carry it confidently for the medium-term.
91 POINTS // $28
THE THIEF? ZINNY SINGLE VINEYARD BAROSSA VALLEY 2024
Cast all preconceptions of Zinfandel and Barossa reds from your mind and prepare for a low alcohol, low additive, low production young quaffer. Tash Mooney has deployed just the right amount of preservative to keep this light red fresh and lively. It’s fruity, spicy, crunchy and so light you can almost see through it, with just enough super-fine tannin to keep things serious on the finish. A versatile fusion match that will handle a touch of spice better than most.
90 POINTS // $36
HEGGIES VINEYARD ESTATE CHARDONNAY 2024
Heggies is at its finest in the cooler years, of which the mild, low-yielding 2024 season goes down among the most graceful. The result is bright, energetic and elegant, built on a core of tangy grapefruit and lemon zest, with subtle white peach. Wild fermentation and 11 months maturation in 34 per cent new French oak barriques has been gently handled to preserve fruit delicacy and purity. A lovely, lighter, lunchtime aperitif Chardonnay.