Bold purple color. On the nose: tart black currants, roasted fig, saucy blackberries, violets, eucalyptus, black pepper glaze, and some vanilla. Full-bodied with solid tannins for structure (but not harsh) and mildly fresh acidity. Blackberry, blueberry and cassis, the fruit is suave and delicious and loaded with violets, cocoa, black pepper, eucalyptus, dark chocolate, earthy and tar tones. Great stuff, but this needs a solid decant or, preferably, a few years of sleep. All Shiraz.

The 2015 Brooks Road Shiraz offers aromas of red and black fruit, earth, sage and toasted oak. Medium weight, it is nicely balanced with good concentration, firm dry tannins and a long finish. It appears less concentrated and weighty compared to the 2014 vintage. A wine sourced from predominately 1971 blocks of the Hickinbotham Clarendon Vineyard and skillfully vinified with attention to detail.

Layered but youthful. Ripe black and wild berry fruit. Nice balance between savoury and fruit elements, with exotic spice notes. The oak is well integrated. Needs time and will reward cellaring.

Bold and savory, with hints of smoke and teriyaki to the concentrated cassis and blackberry flavors. Gains momentum on the finish, with Earl Grey tea and sandalwood accents. Spice and licorice details linger amid the dense tannins.

From historic vines biodynamically farmed, this is a broody, big and multifaceted wine. Cassis, black licorice and mocha mingle with a mix of mint, clove and tarragon. There's a warm stoney mineral streak, too. Fine-grained tannins are covered with plush, tangy berry fruit and lead to a long herb-flecked finish. One for the cellar.

Rich and silky, with violet-scented blackberry and framboise notes, vanilla bean accents and a whiff of espresso. The generous flavors and plump texture linger on the long finish. Drink now through 2027.

The Merlot Revivalist displays a medium dark ruby color and an earthy and spicy nose of dark ripe plum. It is soft and creamy on the palate with tremendous density of flavor. Rich dark fruit permeates the palate and the wine finishes with black pepper, licorice and blueberry notes. A rich and flavorful wine with excellent balance.

The Hickinbotham Clarendon Vineyard covers a steep cut of country from the ridgetops above the village of Clarendon to the Onkaparinga River in the gorge below. Planted since 1971, it is now owned by Jackson Family Farms and the wines are made by Australian Charlie Seppelt and American Chris Carpenter. ‘Revivalist' is said to refer to the extensive vineyard work on the canopy structure of vines planted in 1976, but it may just as well apply to the notion of restoring some decency to the merlot grape. I love the silky, earthy fruit flavours that spring from the bottle. A pre-maceration lasts about 96 hours before it is fermented open top where it spends another three weeks on the skins before 15 months in French oak. Hardly a perfect vintage with a dry spring, a January heatwave and heavy February rains, and a cool finish. No matter, this is fun to drink with its Bing cherry aromas, dried figs and a fragrant savoury finish. I love the elegance here.

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The fleshy plum and licorice notes are generous, with a plump, plush body, cinnamon-scented spice accents and touches of black tea on the finish. Drink now through 2027

The Shiraz Brooks Road is a rich and spicy bold flavored wine of black berry and toasted oak. It reveals nice purity of blackberry fruit on the palate with good acidity and freshness. The finish is persistent with assertive tannins.

The fruit of the historic Hickinbotham vineyard once went into some of Australia's top wines, including Penfolds Grange. Currently owned by California's Jackson family and meticulously farmed by Vineyard Manager Michael Lane, this top-notch fruit is getting the recognition it deserves under its own label. This wine is a heady combo of juicy ripe blackberry fruit, damp wood, the charred embers of a fire, sumac spice and something sanguine and meaty. The palate shows richness of fruit but it's well integrated with savory spicy wood and drying tannins. It's one for the cellar. Drink now–2038.

This dark red colored Cabernet Sauvignon from the McLaren Vale is very good. It opens with a fragrant blackberry and coffee bouquet with hints of black licorice. On the palate, this wine is full bodied, nicely balanced, very fruit forward and juicy. The flavor profile is a tasty mulberry jam with notes of cinnamon and oak. I also detected hints of red currant and red plum. The finish is dry and its flavors and refined tannins drift away nicely. This Cab is very food friendly and I would not sit on it. Instead. I would pair it with a filet mignon in the near term. Very good+.

Plenty to latch onto here. Sweet fruit coated in coffee-cream oak. Overtones of truffle. Cassis and mulberry fruit flavour, by the spadeful. Firm tannin. Sweet and accessible but with a serious side.

A darker fruited shiraz that marries some real depth and brooding characters with some very fresh, fragrant and lively ones. Smells of crushed blackberry and plum fruits, some fine mineral-like aromas, stony and very spicy, it’s an attractive and inherently complex wine. Tannins are fine for the most part, they are delivered in a smooth and supple, really nicely focused and medium-weight in style, fleshy middle palate, nicely detailed, balanced, tastes of toasted biscuit spices and blood plum, really pure and focused. Fine to drink now, best from 2017.

Plump blackberry, cherry and toasted rye bread flavors are supported by a muscular backbone of tannins, set in a velvety texture. Black tea and licorice details lend a refined element to the long finish. Drink now through 2030.-M.W.

This has a clear leafy and fragrant blue fruit thread, really set in the cassis and blueberry zone, some fresh leafy and floral elements too, oak is set back in this wine, chalky savory minerals prevail as the most salient savory character. The palate has crisp, even and elegant tannins, nice and juicy. Flavors are in the blueberry and plum spectrum, some redder tinges, lithe juicy and nicely pared back. Supple, fine, fleshy tannin spread. Drink now, best from 2018.

Australian winemaker Charlie Seppelt and American Chris Carpenter have combined their talents at Hickinbotham to produce what they term is the pinnacle of Clarendon cabernet. Elegance and intensity is the hallmark of this deliciously style red with perfectly crafted tannins to bring structure and frame but with no toughness or dryness. The fruit is a generous mix of bright black fruit flavours with a fleshy mid-palate and perfect acidity. Hand-picked from Clarendon high country at 220 metres the berries were on skins was eighteen days then basket pressed mixing free run and lightly pressed juiced. Three rack-and-returns over eighteen months fed the ageing in Bordeaux-coopered French barrels. At 13.5 percent alcohol this wine makes a serious statement for the New Australia. Hickinbotham Clarendon Vineyard was first planted by Alan Hickinbotham in 1971 in McLaren Vale, and over the years has been the source of fruit for some of Australia’s finest wines including Penfolds Grange and Hardy’s Eileen Hardy. it was purchased and refurbished by Jackson Family Farms beginning in 2000.

Australian winemaker Charlie Seppelt and American Chris Carpenter have combined their talents at Hickinbotham to produce what they term is the pinnacle of Clarendon cabernet. Elegance and intensity is the hallmark of this deliciously style red with perfectly crafted tannins to bring structure and frame but with no toughness or dryness. The fruit is a generous mix of bright black fruit flavours with a fleshy mid-palate and perfect acidity. Hand-picked from Clarendon high country at 220 metres the berries were on skins was eighteen days then basket pressed mixing free run and lightly pressed juiced. Three rack-and-returns over eighteen months fed the ageing in Bordeaux-coopered French barrels. At 13.5 percent alcohol this wine makes a serious statement for the New Australia. Hickinbotham Clarendon Vineyard was first planted by Alan Hickinbotham in 1971 in McLaren Vale, and over the years has been the source of fruit for some of Australia’s finest wines including Penfolds Grange and Hardy’s Eileen Hardy. it was purchased and refurbished by Jackson Family Farms beginning in 2000.

A perennial favorite with our tasting panel, the Marin Pinot (in years when it is made) has its own distintly wild, floral-herbal aromas. Cherries and earth combine on the supple palate and pick up spicy, peppery nuances on the finish. Hold for 5-7 years to bring out even more spice notes.

A slightly funky note to the smoke and oak overlay adds complexity - we're not sure what it is, but we like it. Black Cherry and plum fruit flavors are buttressed by clove notes. Once again, the mouthfeel is something special, full rich and very supple, yet packing enough tannin to suggest holding several years if you desire.

Deep, dark ruby purple color; spicy, cinnamon, deep black cherry aromas; deep full, intense and concentrated black cherry and plum flavors with a touch of bacon, tobacco and spice; very good structure, acidity and balance, finishes with a toasty oak note. One of the biggest Carneros Pinots I've had in a long time, the Sevens Bench bottling still manages to be balanced and complex.

Lots of very solid appley fruit sets this engaging effort firmly on the varietal track, and, in both aroma and flavor, sweet oak is a well-placed comlement rather than a potential scene stealer. Medium-full-bodied and as graceful in its balanced construction as it is composed in its inviting mix of fruit and oak, this finely crafted wine favors brightness over unbridled extract and will drink beautifully over the next several years with any number of meaty dishes ranging from salmon to sea bass.

Aromas of dark fruit, anise, smoke and dried herbs morph into flavors of stone fruits (plums, cherries) in the mouth, with a strong undercurrent of pomegranate. This thick, almost syrupy wine is almost steroidally concentrated, but stays focused ...

Hartford Court's 1999 Pinot Noir Arrendell Vineyard is exquisite. Black raspberries intermingled with blueberries and cherry liqueur are wrapped with toasty oak. This rich, full-bodied, expressive Pinot Noir possesses impressive purity, decent acidity, sweet tannin, and layers of concentrated fruit, yet it is neither heavy nor overblown. This superb effort should drink well during its first 7-9 years of life.