96 points - "An impressive wine of power, clarity and grace that proudly displays the Brokenwood signature. Exceptional fruit, classy, attentive winemaking, palate composure and depth make this one of the most reliable, satisfying, well-priced reds around. The gently spiced fruit is aromatic, dark and intense, with mulberry, damson plum and boysenberry notes, ripe but not overly so. The subtle French oak, evident on pouring, seamlessly integrates into the wine, with fine-grained tannins and balanced acidity providing shape and structure. It strikes a balance between modern and classical styles and is a masterwork in blending, with the grapes sourced exclusively from Brokenwood's managed sites: Graveyard, Oakey Creek, Mistress Block, Verona and the Tallawanta vineyards." - Toni Paterson (Halliday Wine Companion)

93+ points - "Fine, lacey tannin spreads through ripe, cherry-plum fruit, with whispers of smoked meat character murmuring throughout. This is textbook in the best of ways; the Brokenwood winery is certainly in fine form. The extension through the finish is excellent, the weight of the body is medium, and while the quality of this wine is high it’s not aggressive about it; you have to meet it halfway, in a way. This is elegant, controlled, squeaky clean and very good. It will cellar beautifully." - Campbell Mattinson (The Wine Front)

93 points - "Deep and bold red-purple in the glass; Dark chocolate, earth and spice aromas laced with coal-dust. Medium-full bodied with good intensity of flavour and plenty of supple tannins backing up. Very smart shiraz. Easy to enjoy young, but also has potential to age well in the medium term." - Huon Hooke (The Real Review)

93 points - "Maturation for this typically fragrant and elegant Hunter Shiraz was in French oak, 25% new, with 25% puncheons. The grapes hail from a range of famous vineyards – Graveyard, Oakey Creek, Mistress Block, Verona and Tallawanta. A purple/mauve colour here, the nose offers notes of spices and dried herbs, raspberries, milk chocolate and bay leaves with florals and red fruits throughout. This is almost as good as the Reds beating the ‘tahs. Seamless, with good acidity, the oak impact is minimal and well handled, and there are very fine tannins. This is a wine of immense length. So much to like here, a wine for enjoying over the next eight to ten years." - Ken Gargett (Wine Pilot)

Lovely mid-depth colour with purple tints. Lifted red fruit and earthy notes on the nose. Ripe fruit and low oak impact on the palate, with the new oak providing a slight vanillin sweetness that compliments the berry fruit. The ripe fruit tannins are complemented by the natural fruit acidity, resulting in a very long finish for the wine. A stylistically typical medium-bodied Hunter Valley Shiraz from a very good year.

Wine Profile

Winemaker Comments
Our third consecutive wet growing season, La Niña continued to make herself known throughout the first three quarters of the year, with widespread floods again experienced across South Eastern Australia. Up to the 31st of December 2022, we received 1365.5mm of rain with 97 rainy days at Brokenwood. Pokolbin reached its annual rainfall by the end of June, with 2022 being the wettest year that we have had on record. The start of the growing season was particularly challenging with vineyard access and Downy Mildew pressure a constant issue. Thankfully, the weather cleared up in late October. Fruit condition and canopy were excellent despite the cooler summer. This resulted in one of the latest harvests on record, resulting in near perfect tannin ripeness. Depsite the challenging season, wines of outstanding balance were the result.

Vinification
The process involves using both vinomatic fermenters and open-top fermenters with a capacity of 2-4 tonnes. The open-top fermenters are plunged twice daily. After five days, the wine is pressed off, and malolactic fermentation takes place in oak barrels. The wine then matures in 100% French oak, which consists of 11% new oak overall. All Shiraz grapes are sourced exclusively from our owned and managed Hunter Valley vineyards: Graveyard, Mistress Block, Oakey Creek, Tallawanta, and Verona.

Food Pairing
Veal, duck and cheese.

Drink
Drinking well now but will improve with further bottle age.

Wine Specs
Acid g/L: 6.56
pH: 3.4
Residual Sugar g/L: 0.5
Alcohol %: 13.5