Description
Simply wonderful medium-bodied red out of McLaren Vale, so pure and precise, with great line, length and acidity.
It's 100% dry grown, bush vine Grenache from a 100+ year-old vineyard in Clarendon that has been maintained for generations by the Smart family - the charming man is one Bernard Smart...
Lightly tannic and lively-flavoured, it bursts with cherry and raspberry aromatics that make you return for sniff after sniff. Sweet red fruits and some spicy, graphitey notes flow on to a palate that is sandy, fine and, in a word... uplifting.
A few years would do it no harm but it wouldn't last that long in our cellar. A must-buy.
97 points
"Despite the fine acid, there is no acid adjustment here. The oldest part of the vineyard is 102 years old, while the youngest part is 53 years old. The "young" vines have a higher fruiting zone, approximately six inches higher up than the oldest parts of the vineyard, meaning that it can be picked up to 10 days earlier. This "young" pocket has lower pH and higher total acidity, earlier flavor development and, hence, no added acidity. It's a superb wine, one that will evolve in the glass over the evening. Here's hoping it lasts that long."
- Erin Larkin (The Wine Advocate)
96+ points
"Souk spices, red cherry, fresh raspberry, a bit stony and ferrous, Japanese ginger, rosehip, and gee, the aromatics here are quite something. Medium-bodied, a lovely tannin profile, mildly assertive but fine, with a pumice stone texture, acidity is pure with a cranberry crunch to it, and the finish is long and perfumed, with stony grip to close. This is a showstopper. Superb. Beautifully made and a bell-clear expression of Grenache."
- Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)
97 points
"From a slightly younger block (a mere 53 years old) on the Smart Vineyard in Clarendon. Rippling with dark raspberry aromas, an array of warm spices, blood oranges, pomegranate and dried roses. Fine satin stretched over an intricate framework built by lithe acidity and fine-grained tannins."
- Nick Ryan (The Australian)
| Price Bracket | $51 to $100 |
| Type | Red |
| Body | Medium Bodied |
| Variety | Grenache |
| Country | Australia |
| Region | McLaren Vale |
| Australian State | SA |
| Feature |
High Score |
| Reviewed By |
The Wine Front The Wine Advocate The Weekend Australian |
| Critic Score |
96 97 |
| Size | 750ml |
| Vintage | 2024 |
| Closure | Screw Cap |
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Giles Cooke MW Thistledown
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Delivery is free on orders of $150 or more!
For orders under this amount, delivery is calculated at checkout based on your postcode. You can order in any quantity or combination of wines you like. Straight dozens are not required.
We will dispatch your order the same or next business day.
Estimated delivery transit time varies depending on your location. Please review this page for specific estimates.
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Ordering
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