Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
The first vintage to include Eden Valley fruit, this has a complex and spicy nose with aromas of blood orange and blackberry, as well as red and dark plum. Very tarry, strong typicity here. Very primary still, this is really fresh for its age. There’s a wealth of rich and ripe fruit on the palate with supple, smooth and even tannins. Plenty of fresh ripe fruit in the core here – lots of blueberries and blackberries. Many years ahead. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2008 Eligo Shiraz reveals a very deep purple-black color and pronounced creme de cassis, licorice, dark chocolate and nut aromas with underlying loam, cedar, dried plum and espresso notes. Full bodied and yet remarkably elegant in the mouth, it has complex layers of savory and warm black fruit flavors balanced by refreshing acid and a medium to firm level of very fine tannins, finishing with great persistence. Still tight-knit and primary, it should drink best 2014 to 2024+.
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Wine Enthusiast
Duval used to make Grange, so it is no surprise that his current luxury Shiraz is so successful. The 2008 Eligo oozes with oaky sweetness—vanilla, maple syrup and brown sugar notes—but balances that with potent cassis fruit and somehow ends on dry, savory notes of tobacco and spice.
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Wine Spectator
Bright and lively, with lots of raspberry and cherry fruit on a medium-weight frame. A hint of mocha adds interest, remaining open and expressive through the gentle, focused finish. An elegant package.
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.”
Historically and presently the most important wine-producing region of Australia, the Barossa Valley is set in the Barossa zone of South Australia, where more than half of the country’s wine is made. Because the climate is very hot and dry, vineyard managers work diligently to ensure grapes reach the perfect levels of phenolic ripeness.
The intense heat is ideal for plush, bold reds, particularly Shiraz on its own or Rhône Blends. Often Shiraz and Cabernet partner up for plump and powerful reds.
While much less prevalent, light-skinned varieties such as Riesling, Viognier or Semillon produce vibrant Barossa Valley whites.
Most of Australia’s largest wine producers are based here and Shiraz plantings date back as far as the 1850s or before. Many of them are dry farmed and bush trained, still offering less than one ton per acre of inky, intense, purple juice.