Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: As a longtime wine guy, I am always looking for that desert island wine. The Langmeil Freedom 1843 is a perennial candidate for this place in my notebooks. The 2014 vintage is rock solid and easily one of the best Shirazes in the world. TASTING NOTES: This wine is packed and yet it so stately and refined. Its aromas and flavors of black fruit, licorice, and ripe berries stay forever on the palate. Pair its long finish with a triple crème blue-veined cheese. (Tasted: August 14, 2018, San Francisco, CA USA)
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James Suckling
Undeniable old vine depth and concentration. Fresh new wood plays into ripe red berry and fresher earthy nuances. Long waves of tannins run deep and carry blackberry and red plum fruits, long and polished. Best from 2023 to 2035+. Screw cap.
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Wine Enthusiast
From vines that were 171 years old when the grapes for this wine were harvested, this is packed with dark berry fruit, then layered with vanilla, cedar and mint. It's full, plush and warm, just too big, intense and bulky for current consumption. Best from 2020–2030.
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Wine Spectator
Distinctive smoky campfire notes add aromatic lift to the juicy, cardamom-scented wild berry flavors, a touch of fresh herb lingering on the smooth finish. Drink now through 2027.
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.