Vinous (91)

Despite being more than six years old, this structured offering is still a tough nut to crack, remaining resolute and firm. While the gentle midpalate is filled with unadulterated plum, herbal and spice flavors, there is a firm tannic structure, which is emphasized by firm acidity, leaving a rather upright conclusion. This will require patience and a love of acidity. Tea leaves and festive spices linger on the long finish. Unfined and unfiltered, so expect it is to be slightly hazy in color.

James Suckling (97)

Such a deep nose, with a wide spectrum of candied citrus, fresh butter and stunning, leesy complexity. Great concentration and restrained richness, with wonderful mineral freshness give this near-perfect balance. So much drive at the extremely long, lemon and lime-zest finish. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

Halliday Wine Companion (98)

Sourced from 3 vineyards in Piccadilly, Lobethal and the estate’s high-elevation Lenswood block. Whole-bunch pressed, fermented and matured on lees in French barriques and puncheons. The first thing that strikes you is an elegance that is so fundamental to the style and respectful to the elite fruit within. The faintest of oak lifts adds a complexity to start, but the energy and concentration of the fruit become the prime focus on the palate. It's all about chardonnay's finest flavours and a vibrant acidity to drive it long into the future.

Wine Advocate (98)

If you were to assess a wine based solely on its length of flavor, then this 2016 Autumnus Shiraz would do nothing but stun you. The rivulets of velvety, plush fruit rolls across the palate and undulate through the long, lingering finish. What a wine! Wow. As to the flavors, there's Christmas cake spice, black cherries, aniseed and licorice, dark chocolate, raspberries, mulberries, a few damsons, blood plums, beetroot, pastrami and pink peppercorns. A symphonic display. But, for me, more than the flavor and more than the length (both formidable elements in their own rights), the texture is the real highlight. The tannins are so smooth, so shapely and so streamlined that it barely beggars belief. This is what I will remember about this wine in the future: the tannins. Awesome.

Allow us to introduce the spectacular Spee Wah Murray Darling Crooked Mick Viognier 2015, a splendid expression of exquisite Australian viticulture. Produced in the sprawling Murray Darling region, this charming white wine bears the signature of renowned winemakers, Spee Wah. Celebrated for their dedication to sustainable wine production, this Spee Wah offering is crafted from Viognier grapes, carefully nurtured to maturity.

Upon uncorking, this 2015 vintage bestows a striking aromatic profile blending rich apricot and lush floral notes. Abounding with a vibrant palate, it showcases layers of ripe stone fruit flavours harmoniously offset by a deft minerality and a subtle spice undertone. The finish is languidly persistent, affirming the Spee Wah Murray Darling Crooked Mick Viognier 2015 as a wine of superb structure and enchanting complexity.

Incredible solo or with Asian-inspired dishes, it's a testament to the masterful craft of Spee Wah, carrying the indelible imprint of its sun-kissed Australian terroir with unmistakable elegance.

Vinous (92+)

(64% mataro and 36% old-vines shiraz) Dense ruby. Explosive bouquet of spiced cherry, plum, blackberry, creme de cassis, roasted coffee and cured meat. Mouthfilling, dense and verging on sweet, but with impressive structure and youthful tannins. Sexy oak spices add sweetness to the finish. A deeply concentrated, weighty wine that's wound-up right now and needs at least three years of cellaring.

Embark on a sensory adventure with the exceptional Spy Valley Envoy Johnson Sauvignon Blanc 2013. From the acclaimed climes of Marlborough, New Zealand, this celebrated vintage is a perfect representation of the producer's meticulous precision and craftsmanship. Spy Valley is known, globally, for their intuitive use of both traditional and innovative winemaking techniques, yielding a broad and luscious palette of wines.

The Envoy Johnson Sauvignon Blanc 2013 is an exceptional product of their craft. Blended exclusively from small batches, the wine is fermented using native yeasts in seasoned French Oak barrels. This marriage of Old World tradition and New World innovation begets a wine of intense character and complexity, featuring an intoxicating bouquet of tropical fruit, structured by a keen mineral edge.

Unravel layers of flavour with each sip of the Spy Valley Envoy Johnson Sauvignon Blanc 2013, a wine that truly tests the boundaries of what New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc can accomplish.

Wine Advocate (98-100)

Another potentially perfect wine, the 2018 Lamella Shiraz, from the Eden Valley, is full-bodied and velvety in texture. Offering swirls of complex mixed berries, tea and spice, it finishes long and tannic, with plenty of backbone and structure, plus intriguing hints of espresso and chocolate. In contrast to The Standish, it's more impressive, while The Standish is more opulent and generous.

Wine Advocate (96-98)

Mint, sage and thyme accent blackberry and black cherry fruit in the 2018 The Schubert Theorem Shiraz. Full-bodied and rich without being heavy, it finishes tremendously long, with silky, cocoa-powder-like tannins. It should drink well for a couple of decades.

James Suckling (99)

Unbelievable! Another insane wine. The length of this is endless. The blue fruits and Asian spices are mind-blowing. It’s medium- to full-bodied with a mouth full of polished and refined, creamy tannins. It goes on for minutes. Endless. Seamless and gorgeous. Leave this for years ahead if you can keep your hands off it. Better after 2025.

Wine Advocate (99)

The 2021 The Schubert Theorem Shiraz was made with fruit from the Roennenfeldt Road vineyard, in Marananga, with 70% whole bunches in the ferment. The northeastern corner of this vineyard is matured in concrete egg to preserve the blue-fruited core that defines the style of this wine; it is the only cuvée that features an alternate maturation vessel. I knew (before and) when I tasted the 2019 and 2020 vintages what I was going to get, by and large. When I was in the Barossa in June 2021, I was already thinking about what the Schubert would look like from this year, as the perceived fit of season and style had the potential to dovetail in a most titillating fashion—a "stars aligning" kind of thing. A cool season overlays a warm site capable of producing dark, dense, sometimes brooding, always pure Shiraz. The combination of concrete egg (and, in this case, a slightly shorter maturation in this vessel) and cooler year has produced a wine of scintillating precision and fruit sweetness. It glows with its own black light. It shimmers and oscillates between fruit luminescence and plush tannic texture, and in doing so, it barely contains its own energy and abundance. The distinction between this profusion of fruit and the old "fruit bombs" of yore is the precision of acid and pliable fruit tannin that defines the middle palate and the ability of the fruit (courtesy of the winemaking) to shine through the vessels in which it matured. The tannin that shapes the wine is plentiful, make no mistake, yet it is ductile and fine and threads through every aspect of the palate. A thrilling Schubert this year, it's like a strike of lightning on a dark night. This wine appeals most fervently to my penchant for freshness, energy and resonant bass line. 14.9% alcohol.

Wine Advocate (98+)

I'm excited to taste this, as it was my favorite cuvée last year. It usually changes year to year, given the seasons, and I like that. It's usually the only cuvée to enjoy the benefits of an alternate vessel—a concrete egg—and this year, the 2022 The Schubert Theorem Shiraz joins the Relic and the Standish as well. The impact of the egg in this wine is one of refinement, or so I see it; it retains a purity of fruit at the core, which speaks to the chalky tannins that spool through the finish. They're chewy and seductive and really great. It's a beautiful release—not shimmering like the 2021, but textural and fine and elongated in its way. It's a beguiling wine, a thinking wine. And, as with the other wines tasted alongside, the bottle that has been open for two days is infinitely more complete; however, it must be noted that this review is built on the freshly opened bottle.

Vinous (90)

(aged for 30 months in three-year-old French oak; this fruit at one point was allegedly purchased by Penfolds for its Grange bottling) Full ruby. Porty, superripe aromas of black cherry, crushed blackberry and gunflint. Fat, sweet, superripe and highly concentrated, with liqueur-like flavors of black fruits, dark chocolate and nuts. Not quite thick but its port-like ripeness will be a bit extreme for some tasters. Fans of this style will love it. (Epicurean Wines, Seattle WA

Wine Advocate (98-100)

The 2018 The Standish Shiraz (a sample blend from barrel) is a bit stalky (it's about 50% whole cluster), but it's gorgeously perfumed, with hints of herbal tea, raspberries, blackberries and licorice. It just exudes complexity, while also being full-bodied, plush and creamy, with a long, elegant finish. This seamless beauty is a candidate for perfection.

Wine Advocate (98-100)

The 2018 The Standish Shiraz (a sample blend from barrel) is a bit stalky (it's about 50% whole cluster), but it's gorgeously perfumed, with hints of herbal tea, raspberries, blackberries and licorice. It just exudes complexity, while also being full-bodied, plush and creamy, with a long, elegant finish. This seamless beauty is a candidate for perfection.

James Suckling (98)

Such concentrated blueberry and cherry aromas, as well as violets and fresh-earth aromas. This delivers an immediate sense of richness with chocolate in the mix, too. Very pure. The palate has a very resolved feel with deep, essence-like fruit flavors that hold a rich, plum and blackberry line that drives long and very even. This is really something. Drink over the next decade.