Vintage 2020
Brilliant ruby with scarlet edges. A heady mix of fruits, spices and perfume gives notes of redcurrant, raspberries and liqueur cherries along with red licorice, musk, rose petals and a hint of rosemary. Bright red berry characters are gorgeous and concentrated. This core of fruit richness is laced through with spice and fresh herbs. Fine, sandy tannins are a hallmark of The Absconder providing exceptional texture, a savoury counterpoint, and great length.
Expert reviews:
Wine Pilot 95 Points “Wirra Wirra, so good they named it twice. Well, something like that. This is sourced from one of the oldest blocks in McLaren vale, and that old vine fruit seems to emerge as a key element of what is an excellent wine. It all goes through a basket press with regular hand plunging. It’s a gentle approach that suits this variety. Medium bodied with gorgeous, lifted aromas of red fruit and rose petal, all spruce up with a little spicy lift. The palate is supple with a slight confectionery raspberry nuance that is most appealing. This is Grenache as Grenache should be.” Wine Pilot, 24 Oct 2021
The Wine Front 93 Points “The vineyard was 100 years old (planted 1920) in the year the grapes were harvested for this wine. Humbling, really. In short, this is another excellent release. Noticeably and overtly meaty, which in my books is rarely a bad thing. Blueberry and red liquorice, smoked deli meats and assorted ‘Tuscan’ herbs. yes there’s a smokiness to this wine but it teams beautifully with the fruit and indeed with the fine grain of the tannin. There’s a sense of finesse to this. It’s lovely, very.” The Wine Front, 26 Sep 2021
Halliday Wine Companion 2022 93 Points “This is a rich, traditionally extracted wine in the regional context, without quite the verve of the better examples. Basket pressed and plunged by hand with ample oak, it may have been better with less agitation and longer extraction, befitting the best regional representations. Raspberry bon-bon, mocha and mint are framed by cedar French oak that frankly, gets in the way of the flow. Plenty of oomph, but not quite the delicacy, intricacy and vitality sought.” Halliday Wine Companion 2022, 28 Nov 2021
