Winemaker Notes
#38 Wine Spectator Top 100 of 2023
Garnet red with purple hues. A complex nose of dark cherry and blackberry aromas with a hint of forest floor and spice. On the palate, vibrant dark cherry and blackberry with a hint of 'wombat rolled in allspice' balanced with soft, supple tannins.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Aromas of black fruit, pepper, dark licorice and overturned earth. Medium- to full-bodied with creamy texture and fine tannins. It has a savory fruit character with some salinity to it.
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Wine Spectator
A compelling, fun red on a juicy, fresh frame, with smooth, polished tannins and fresh pomegranate and maraschino cherry flavors at the core, plus details of milk chocolate, nutmeg, white peppercorn and an appealing hint of toasted herbs and fresh earth. Reveals tannins that firm up on the finish, which packs a spicy kick.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
2021 was a lovely vintage in Barossa—cool, long and with a return to moderate yields after two years of aggressively low yields and warm conditions. So here, the 2021 Mother's Milk Shiraz is fine and detailed, with loads of plush, voluminous fruit, in keeping with the style of the wine, but it is imbued with a little extra focus and precision, courtesy of the vintage. Nicely done.
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
The Barossa Zone encompasses the Barossa Valley and Eden Valley. Some of the oldest vines in Australia can be found here.
Barossa Valley of course is the most important and famous wine growing region in all of Australia where 140+ year-old, dry-farmed Shiraz vines still produce inky, purple and dense juice for some of Australia's best wines.
In the cooler, wetter Eden Valley sub-region, the Hill of Grace vineyard is home to famous Shiraz vines from the 1800s but the region produces also some of Australia’s very best and age-worthy Rieslings.