Hickinbotham Clarendon Vineyard Brooks Road Shiraz 2021

An exemplar of warm-climate shiraz, full-weighted and plush, yet managing to come across as fresh, poised and eminently drinkable all at once. Not an easy feat. Hand picked and extracted gently, with the cap kept wet across a three-week period on skins. Matured in oak (30% new) for eight months before blending and transfer to an old 25L foudre and a concrete egg for a further 10 months. Raspberry coulis, clove, star anise and black plum. The tannins, impeccably managed, as is the wont here, with a fine line of savoury chew. The freshness, bright and salty. Excellent wine. Points: 95/100

Halliday Wine Companion ∙ 6th Jul 2023

Impressively youthful, dark and deep in the glass. Evocative aromas of mulberry, dark cherry, dried herbs, anise, cola, mocha and sweet spice. Really exotic and lifted. Flavours are full, dense, dark and powerful, lashings of dark fruits, spice and nutty oak. There’s firm, shapely tannins and punchy acidity ensuring the plush fruit is kept under control. Long, textured and delicious. Points: 96/100

The Real Review ∙ 20th Jun 2023

It’s a mighty red wine, weighty with fruit and oak flavour, but it’s also fresh and flowing. It’s the kind of wine that simply sweeps you along. Sweet raspberry, dense plum, cloves and assorted woodsy spice notes, along with soy, cream and cedar. There’s a chalkiness to the tannin, or at least a fine chalk-dust element, and a general impression of completeness. For all its grunt though I can’t really emphasis the freshness of the profile here enough. It makes this feel as though it’s something of a modern archetype. Points: 94/100

The Wine Front ∙ 18th May 2023