2023 Torbreck The Struie Barossa Shiraz
2023 Torbreck The Struie Barossa Shiraz

2023 Torbreck The Struie Barossa Shiraz

99 pts
Torbreck |Barossa Valley |Shiraz
A Barossa–Eden Valley Shiraz with depth, spice and definition – everything you’d expect from Torbreck, delivered with precision and restraint.
Price:
$55.00
Stock:
Sold out
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Description

The Struie combines Shiraz from the Barossa and Eden Valleys – Barossa for the dark fruit and body, Eden for the spice and lift. It’s a blend that’s been part of Torbreck’s DNA for years, and the 2023 release feels especially clear and focused.

The season was long and even, which meant slow ripening and great natural balance in the fruit. The winemaking stayed hands-on and simple – small-batch ferments, basket press, and time in seasoned French oak. No heavy oak flavour, no tricks, just clean fruit and texture.

It tastes like what it is: quality old-vine Barossa Shiraz with a bit more shape and freshness. Blackberry, plum and a line of pepper and earth, plenty of depth but not too much weight. Structured, savoury and built to last.

99 points
"It is clearly one of the greatest Torbreck wines of all time."
- Matthew Jukes (MatthewJukes.com)

Andrew Caillard

Andrew Caillard

The Vintage Journal 94 Points

Deep crimson. Attractive dark plum, praline, touch peppercorn aromas. Generous and mouthfilling wine with ample dark plum, blackberry pastille, pure aniseed flavours with fine chalky firm tannins and underlying mocha notes. Finishes bittersweet/ firm with cedarwood/liquorice notes. Needs another year to unpack. Drink 2026–2036.

Dave Brookes

Dave Brookes

Halliday Wine Companion 94 Points

Shiraz from 76/24% Barossa Valley/Eden Valley. Deep magenta/crimson with aromas of blackberry, black cherry and blood plum underscored with hints of clove, bay leaf, licorice, dried meats, sage, mace, dark chocolate, graphite and violets. Oak, while there, is never a dominant feature in Torbreck wines; it's always about the fruit and the fruit here is black, spicy and has a long pull, with powdered, granitic tannins and plenty of latent power.

Matthew Jukes

Matthew Jukes

MatthewJukes.com 99 Points

The 43% Eden fruit in this wine is blacker than a century-old inkwell, and while it is not the dominant portion of this Eden/Barossa amalgam, but by God it makes itself heard in this wine. I love the way that as every year passes, individual wines, presumably because of an infinite number of decisions going their way, end up playing themselves into legendary contention. It is impossible to predict which label will take the top spot on the podium, and it is not always the rock star wine with the fattest prices that comes away with the biggest praise. In the challenging 2023 vintage, The Struie has, and I have whispered His name in this piece before, the presence of a deity in the glass! It is clearly one of the greatest Torbreck wines of all time, and it is most definitely my favourite Struie. Bring value for money into the equation, and this wine is in contention for finest value, bang for the buck, and flavour for moolah Shiraz on Earth. The nose is a great big signpost saying, ‘this way’, and the palate is a hint lighter and gentler but altogether genial and balanced, like a philosopher with a good back catalogue of side-splitting one-liners. Experts will fall off their chairs while tasting this wine, while newcomers will feel spectacularly welcome. It’s a slice of eminently affordable luxury, and you’d be mad not to take advantage of it today.

Erin Larkin

Erin Larkin

The Wine Advocate 95 Points

The 2023 The Struie is a blend from Eden and Barossa, melding the higher altitude austerity and structure of Eden with the density and muscle of the Barossa. I like this wine, because if you sit with it for long enough, you can clearly see the component parts side by side. The whole makes the understanding of the parts. You get the blueberry, black cherry, licorice, crushed quartz, aniseed and dark chocolate of Eden married to the bloody, earthy, gritty muscle of Barossa. Awesome. 15% alcohol, sealed under natural cork and wax.

The Eden Valley, the cooler region to the east of the Barossa Valley, consists of river valleys and undulating hills covered with large gums, rocky outcrops and Aboriginal heritage sites.

It is a high-altitude area of between 400 and 500 metres, compared with the Barossa Valley’s elevation of 200 to 300 metres. This higher altitude and 1 to 2 weeks later ripening pattern results in more distinctive varietal flavour characteristics, lower pH and higher acidities.

While the Eden Valley region is most associated with the white wine variety, Riesling, it also produces elegant, tautly structured Shiraz which is highly prized by winemakers.

This Torbreck Shiraz cuvée is a skillful blend of fruit from a 40 year old Eden Valley Shiraz vineyard and an 80 year old Barossa Shiraz vineyard – a marriage of elegance and intensity.

Vintage Summary (2023)

The 2023 growing season brought above-average rainfall in winter and spring and a cooler summer. The majority of the harvest tookplace in the colder months, and most vineyards were not harvested until April, approximately one month later than usual.

Cooler seasons can pose several challenges, but through our dedicated commitment to viticulture practices, such as hand pruning and harvesting withcareful soil management, the vintage resulted in low-yielding and resilient fruit.The vintage has resulted in very strong wines from the Eden and Barossa Valleys, with bright colours and freshness from highe rnatural acidities, auguring them towards greater longevity and detail across the palate.

Winemaking

The Struie is a blend of Shiraz from high-altitude Eden Valley vineyards and lower-elevation Barossa Valley sites. Eden fruit contributes structure and lifted aromatics, while Barossa parcels provide richness and depth. Each vineyard is vinified separately in open-top fermenters. The wines are basket-pressed and matured in a mix of seasoned and select new French oak barriques for around 18 months.

Bottled unfined and unfiltered, The Struie is a poised, expressive Shiraz combining elegance with regional power.

Tasting Note

Opaque with dark Aubergine core. Lifted aromas of blueberry, mulberry, blackberry and black plum leap from the glass and meld effortlessly with graphite, sandalwood, liquorice and dark cocoa chocolate. On first sip the palate is welcoming and plush with black and blue fruits and soft round tannins. The fruit and acid intermingle nicely across the textured mouthfeel without any harshness or bitterness. A true pleasure that will reward for twenty years but probably best in the first ten. Ready from 2025. Serve at 16C/55F with Texas BBQ rib, or any of your favourite steaks.

Price Bracket $51 to $100
Type Red
Body Full Bodied
Variety Shiraz
Country Australia
Region Barossa Valley
Australian State SA
Reviewed By James Suckling
The Wine Advocate
Halliday Wine Companion
MatthewJukes.com
The Vintage Journal
Critic Score 99
Alcohol 15%
Size 750ml
Vintage 2023

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