Winemaker Notes
2015 The Factor is predominantly from the Gomersal and Marananga sub-regions of the Barossa, providing dense texture and richness to the palate with subtle notes of olive tapenade, saddle leather and minerals. Ripe aromas of plum and wild blackberries, olive, pepper and spice are all supported by a dark core of espresso roast, ripe blackberries and saltbush. Brooding and densely packed, this lavish wine has ample generosity to cellar for many years, where it will slowly unravel its beguiling riches.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This is a wine of impressive depth and detail with a strong delivery of ripe and lively black cherries, blackberries, blood plums and mulberries. Dark chocolate, baking spices and tarry nuances, too. The palate has immensely powerful flavors that are faithfully guarded with long, deep tannins, carrying a very confident, sexy and convincing expression of great Barossa shiraz. A superb wine. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
I'm a sucker for the complex floral and savory aromas on the nose of Torbreck's 2015 The Factor. It's 100% Shiraz aged in predominantly older oak and features notes of violets, hickory smoke, mint, blueberries and mocha. It's full-bodied but structured, with firm tannins and acids that give the palate shape and length. While nearly approachable now, it should age well for over a decade.
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Wine Enthusiast
From elevated, low yielding old vines in stony soil, The Factor is often one of Torbreck’s broodiest wines in its youth, but this vintage, with a touch of bottle age, shows how quickly it morphs into a thing of expressive beauty. A complex nose starts with roast veg, olive tapenade and sanguine, mineral notes, but with time in the glass it reveals more plum, cherry fruit and mocha. Tannins are ultrafine and powdery, the earthy-mineralsanguine character flowing all the way to finish and providing a nice balance to the silky fruit. Rich and plush but with depth, complexity and ageability. Drink 2022–2035.
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Wine Spectator
Juicy and vibrant up front, balancing power and elegance, this offers a precise mix of gingerbread, orange peel, date and black walnut notes that segue seamlessly into chocolate-covered dried blueberry and blackberry flavors. Everything comes together with tremendous grace and harmony on the long, epic finish. The polished tannins never get in the way. Shiraz. Drink now through 2028.
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.