2014 Australia

Crittenden's “homage” to the classic Catalonian blend of Tempranillo (50 percent), Mataro (Mourvèdre, 30 percent) and Grenache (20 percent) was inspired by winemaker Rollo Crittenden's love of this part of Spain. The grapes come from a vineyard just outside the Mornington Peninsula region and Rollo uses old oak and wild fermentation to retain freshness in the style.

The wine is indeed fresh, lean and pure. Bright, juicy red and black fruit comes through from the Tempranillo whilst the Mataro adds a dense feel to the wine with a meaty element; and the Grenache brings elegant spice and white pepper to the long finish. This is a really impressive wine with a clear Catalonian feel to it, ¡salut!
Catriona Felstead - Australia Buyer, January 2017

Some tempered classic Semillon notes of fleshy white fruit, coupled with floral hints on the nose. That lovely white fruit again on the palate, crisp acidity from the 14% Sauvignon Blanc content, keeps everything in check, taut and mineral. A bit more richness then comes through on the finish, ripe yellow plums and the tell-tale Semillon hint of boiled sweets. Good depth and breadth and nice length.
Chris Pollington, Private Account Manager

Deep crimson. Highly perfumed - with rich fruit and a light floral quality. Very intense and deeply fruited on the palate but the fruit is not overly sweet (that's good). Darker and more savoury on the palate, with a touch of black olive already. Spice and pepper from oak and fruit. Chewy and fresh on the long, tangy finish. 
Julia Harding MW - jancisrobinson.com, 2nd Jan 2017

Exclusive to Berry Bros. & Rudd, this is Larry’s take on a traditional Alsatian Field Blend (Pinot Grigio, Gewurztraminer, Sauvignon Gris and Riesling), mixing the grapes together at picking and co-fermenting so the proportions of the varieties remain unknown. The nose is highly perfumed with pronounced aromas of rose petals. The palate has delicate peachy fruit but is broad textured and weighty with a long, spicy finish. Drink now to 2017. Match with Vietnamese summer rolls, Pad Thai, roasted vegetable tart.

Classic Coonawarra Cabernet, cool blackcurrant fruit with a hint of mint. Lovely intensity. Tannins are fine and well-integrated, good depth across the palate with an attractive ‘juiciness’ to the fruit. Silky and feels very complete already, the benefit of releasing to the market with some bottle age. This is a very fine but generous Cabernet, simply a very impressive wine which will age beautifully (but there’s no need to wait!) Drink 2019 – 2026+
Martyn Rolph, Private Account Sales Manager
 
The aromas immediately announce the variety, displaying intense characters of blackcurrant, red berry, black olive and a subtle hint of menthol.  Combined with the nutty oak aromas, this wine delivers a complex yet elegant bouquet.
The palate of this wine has a perfectly aligned structure, weight and intensity creating a backbone for longevity.  The aromas on the nose follow through onto the palate and these full bodied, spicy flavours combined with pin point acidity and firm, grainy tannins deliver a wine of stature and grace.  This wine will continue to develop in complexity and interest for as long as you can manage to cellar it.
Winemakers Note

Brighter, fresher and more restrained than I remember previous releases: this has real freshness on the nose with bright citrus fruit and subtle complexity, with hints of freshly crushed almond. Cool, glossy and textured on the palate, underpinned by tangy citrus acidity; this is balanced, racy and fresh, closer to the style of Yattarna in previous releases, but with a softer, more generous mouth-feel. The wine is fermented in 80 percent new French oak, but this is so well-integrated you wouldn’t know. It would be fun to taste blind.
Adrian Brice, Fine Wine Buyer

The 2014 is a very true representation of St Henri which is, for me, the absolute sweet spot within the Penfolds Icon range. The large oak vats used impose almost no oak-derived character at all. The nose is lifted, generous and graceful with lots of redcurrant and cherry. It is deliciously silky, with ripe, fine tannins and freshening acidity. Certainly no shrinking violet, there is plenty of fleshy fruit here, but this is refined and classy. The word “pure” appears in my tasting note again and again. Notes of eucalypt, star anise and bacon fat linger across the long finish. Drink 2020-2045+.
Martyn Rolph, Private Account Manager

This wine comes from Johnno’s vineyard, which sits just below the winery and was planted in 1908. 100 + year old Semillon vines, basket pressed. Made in a style reminiscent of the Hunter semillons of yesteryear. The result is a more textural style of Semillon, a contrast to the dry, minerality of the Vat 1. The nose has a lovely florality with hints of Orange blossom, Honeysuckle and Lemon Grass. The palate has a rich intensity of citrus (Grapefruit, Mandarin orange) fruit allied with a piercing acidity and hint of chalkiness that creates a great finish and snap at the back palate enticing one back for more. Drink now – 2025+.
Stuart Rae, Private Account Manager

The 2014 is stunning, an very interesting, Riesling-esque nose, with similarities to great Chenin Blanc. Wonderful texture on the palate, rich, full-bodied , rounded and crisp. This is of course still very young, but gives great pleasure even now. Probably the best Hunter Valley Semillon I have ever tasted.
Chris Pollington, Private Account Manager

A pioneer of the Hunter Valley – Tyrrell’s wines, a by-word for the highest quality and age worthy Semillon.  Today Tyrrell’s still sets the benchmark for this region, producing not just Semillons, but Chardonnays and Shirazes that are amongst the best if not the finest in the Hunter when their vineyards and the vintage align.  Focus at Tyrrell’s has returned to producing middle range to premium wines and the increased emphasis on quality is evident in their recent releases.  

With notes of forest-fruit yoghurt on the nose, this is very attractive and ripe, but nicely tempered by a hint of graphite in the background. Serious and savoury on the palate, with lots of matière, the wine is full-bodied and cream with layers of mouth-filling blackcurrant fruit and nuances of graphite, all kept in check by good acidity and fine tannins. Excellent depth, concentration and balance; this is an excellent Bin 407 with cool-climate fruit from Coonawarra and warmer climate fruit from the Barossa. 
Chris Pollington, Fine Wine team

Vanya Cullen’s low-cropping, 28-hectare, dry-grown estate is a riot of colour and biodiversity. She is convinced that biodynamic principles have shaped the quality, character and consistency of the fruit. Her devotion to “quality, integrity and sustainability” in both the vineyards and winery has resulted in something extraordinary and special.

This is a masterclass on Margaret River Cabernet. As always, it’s elegant on the nose with cassis, mocha, espresso bean and finely sharpened pencil. Medium-bodied, the palate presents small-berried fruit with a clean acid structure, balanced by fine graphite tannins. The finish is mesmerizingly long, concentrated and yet lifted on the palate. This is pulsating with life. Drink to 2025.

Fully ripe, intensely flavoured and structured, this is a magnificent wine. A blend of 98 percent Shiraz and two percent Cabernet Sauvignon from the Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, Wrattonbully, Clare Valley and Magil Estate, it has been aged for 20 months in 100 percent new American hogsheads. Deep plush garnet, the wine has an unmistakable fragrant Grange nose of dark fruits, spices, coffee bean and gamey notes. On the palate there is a backbone of firm tannins and great lifting freshness; savoury, meaty and earthy with a fruit profile reminiscent of black plums and blueberries. Grange has an amazing power, with complexity and persistence shown on the very long finish which allows all the flavours to coat the palate beautifully. Drink 2020-2045.
Javier Perurena - Private Account Manager