Planted to Tempranillo in 2000, just outside Kuitpo on the southwest escarpment of Mount Lofty Ranges, Yacca Paddock’s vistas overlooking the Gulf of St Vincent enjoy rejuvenating maritime breezes which encourage vines to yield harvests of the ripest tannins and intensely complex varietal characters. Vinified in traditional open fermenters, Yacca Paddock makes a wonderfully textural, stylish wine of natural fruit sweetness, tart red cherry flavours and juicy, food friendly savouryness, prepare a grill of Mediterranean veggies or fry of fresh sardines and have a Yacca.

A generously flavoured accord of great McLaren Vale vineyards, Ben Rigg's Piebald Gully, Paxton's Gateway, Wright's Duckchase, Beal's Monapilla and Joch Bosworth's splendid Bradens site. Monapilla is at the base of Willunga foothills, Duckcase is located above Seaview's old holdings to the north of McLaren Vale, the Bradens property is further towards Willunga, originally an almond grove, it is one of Bosworth's most meritorious plantings.

Mr Riggs makes a perennially bespoke assemblage of great Shiraz vineyards, owner operated by McLaren Vale's most eminent growers, his very own Piebald Gully, Paxton's Gateway and the sensational Martins property. The auspicious sites are located on some of the most fortuitious terroirs in McLaren Vale, narrow planted for low yields and stimulated by cooling gully winds which drift down the Mount Lofty ranges. These are the ideal mesoclimes for Shiraz and have been a source of the most memorable vintages.

John The Gaffer Riggs (1814-1902), great great great grandfather of Ben Riggs, migrated from Dorsetshire and settled in Gawler 1855. One of South Australia's most prominent farmers, he owned hundreds of acres dedicated to wheat. His sheep flock was also highly regarded and his methods progressive for the time. Success in the wheat trade was matched by significant awards at exhibitions in Sydney, London and Paris. Ben Riggs' own love of the land and his passion for it's offerings are directly attributable to the efforts of his far sighted ancestor.

An assemblage of parcels Cabernet, Merlot and Shiraz from a coterie of splendid vineyards in McLaren Vale, a big boned style with dizzying levels of alcohol, designed to delight the most boisterous Aussie Claret enthusiast. The medley of varietals dance, each element putting their best foot forward. Cherries, blackberries and plum, dressed by a wainscot of polished vanillin oak, the silky, satin profile, supported by suave tannins, cascades effortlessly through the palate, an accord of seamless complexity and delectable weight of fruit.

Merlot for seductive softness and early drinking appeal, the harvest of vines along Long Gully Rd, treated to the richness of barrel ferments and a tender term of age in a selection of seasoned and new, French and American oak. Deep red in colour, redolent of freshly picked berries and piquant anise spice, layered with punnets of red and black currants, the ripeness of fleshy plums, milk coffee, carob and cassis, a youthful Merlot style, supported by a seamless structure of fine silky tannins and aromatic cedar oak, McLaren Vale in a chocolate box.

Sparky Marquis is left handed, he worked in fine restaurants as a Maitre D' to pay his way through college, before returning to the family business of viticulture and establishing Mollydooker, not far from the parents vineyards at the eminent Fox Creek. An inventory of parcels from Coppermine and Ryans Road, Martins and Long Gully Road, barrel fermented an matured in a high proportion of French and American oak. Awash with brambleberry, dark currants, plummyness and cerise, lingering on a course of soft chamois tannins.

Gigglepot is a vibrant and effusive expression of Cabernet Sauvignon, charming and elegant, full of personality, a dazzling effulgence of fruit picked off the Rivers Lane vineyard in McLaren Vale. Vinified and matured in the finest American oak barrels, half of which are completely new. Briars, mocha and mint, rhubarb, cherry and creamy cassis over a supportive tapestry of delicate coconut oak, Gigglepot is fashioned to enthuse the splendour of superior vineyard McLaren Vale Cabernet to beam brilliantly and assuredly shine.

The pick of crop from the Gateway and Rivers Lane vineyards in McLaren Vale, barrel fermented and matured in the luxury of mostly new French and American oak. The most superior estate parcel of Cabernet, over a backbone of Carnival of Love Shiraz. Inky, dense hues. Fragrant bright red fruit nose, blackberries and plum jam. Well guided by precise tannins, the captivating interplay between Cabernet and Shiraz offers a sophisticated mix of plum and mocha, beside raspberries and clove, complexity and elegance before a well balanced finish.

The most extravagant celebration of McLaren Vale Shiraz, crafted from a meticulous hand picking of fruit, grown to the resplendent Gateway vineyard at Seaview, fermented and matured within the opulence of exclusively new American oak. Raspberry richness and fully fleshed plum, a twist of the pepper mill and curls of cinnamon oak, the full spectrum of Shiraz flavours from cherries to chocolate, currants, mocha and spice. An outstanding articulation of balance and poise, the lingering, intensely berry compote finish takes Carnival of Love to where Shiraz excels.

Mollydooker own and operate the most spectacular vineyards, choice sites along the golden mile of McLaren Vale's sainted Seaview Ridge. The closely husbanded Mollydooker vines are sustainably managed and a true labour of love for the viticultural team, proprietors Sarah and Sparky have refused the temptations of enrichment to preserve the integrity of their peerless quality fruit. They have been thrice crowned with the prestigious Bushing King Award, claimed Australian Winemakers of Year and a breathtaking 99 Wine Advocate points.

A breathtaking 16% level of alcohol provides Blue Eyed Boy with a measure of mischief to ingratiate the most demanding and ribald bon vivant. A collation of parcels off a tally of elite sites at Coppermine Road, Long Gully Road and the Mollydooker estate vineyard. Barrel fermented and aged in a high proportion of new American oak. Viscous with luscious layers of berries and peppered plum, espresso and chocolate cream. Full bodied over a backbone of well defined tannins, as the wine fills the mouth and continues to evolve with every glass.

One must have the courage to stand up for one's beliefs and not conform to mediocrity. Serpico was a famous New York cop who wasn't afraid to work against the system, he succeeded in exposing much of the injustice and inequity. Mitolo take Serpico's example to step outside the constraints of established style and redefine the accepted genre of Australian Cabernet. Serpico is made to the Amarone technique of drying grapes before fermenting, concentrating flavours, building great intensity and forming the silkiest tannins.

Every Shiraz grape grown by Mitolo is cultivated and nurtured with passion and zeal, sparing no effort or resource to ensure that the best of everything is brought together to construct wines of elegance, purity and power. Savitar is the flagship Mitolo Shiraz, a tightly structured wine produced by maestro Ben Glaetzer in very limited qualities. Savitar features heady aromas and a powerful yet elegant multi dimensional palate. Shiraz is sourced from a single superb site, the elite Lopresti Vineyard's Chinese Block in Willunga, at the southern end of McLaren Vale.

An exclusive assemblage of the most elite parcels, picked off a tally of the finest rows Shiraz on the Chinese and Sandra's blocks at Aldinga and Willunga. Remarkable for its opulence, seamlessness, linearity and textural aplomb, Marsican is defined by the richness of ripe black fruits, olive tapenade savouryness and fragrance of freshly milled tradewind spice. A long cool ferment and gentle press, before being treated to the luxury of completely new French oak for eighteen months, followed by a rigorous cull to determine the most outstanding barrels for inclusion into Marsican Shiraz.

Whether it's the care taken by Frank Mitolo in the vineyard, or the excellence of Ben Glaezter's skill at making icon wines, each edition of Mitolo is nurtured and developed with a zeal and passion that spares no effort to ensure that the best of everything is brought together to formulate wines of elegance, purity and power. Jester is matured in the same barrels that have been used for prior vintages of Mitolo's most auspicious editions of Shiraz. Jester is upfront and personable for early enjoyment, it over delivers in terms of quality and style.

Monarcho was the most eccentric of all jesters at the court of Elizabeth I. He was the only fool ever named by Shakespeare and is featured in Loves Labour Lost. The blue attired Monarcho was more intelligent and politically aware than his behaviour suggested. A fifth of fruit in Jester Cabernet has been treated to the painstaking Amarone technique, drying grapes on open racks to concentrate flavour and soften the tannins. Jester is upfront and approachable for early appreciation, an accessible, mouth filling Cabernet wine.

From fruit grown to the Chinese Block on Lopresti vineyard in Willunga district at the southern end of McLaren Vale. Soils are heavy grey loam over sandstone intermixed with black Biscay clay, a hungry earth which naturally controls yield. The climate mirrors that of the Mediterranean, warm days and cool nights ensure even ripening and development of rich fruit flavours. GAM is opulent and robust, a Shiraz of great richness that's multilayered with complexity, it nevertheless retains a measure of finesse and the characteristic Mitolo softness.

From a single parcel of vine at the southern end of McLaren Vale near the seaside town of Willunga, paradoxically known to the vignerons as Sandra. Fruit is gently crushed and pumped over for ten days of ferment, followed by eighteen months in a selection of mostly seasoned French oak, aimed at preserving the feminity of a distinctly supple block of Shiraz. Prettily perfumed of ripe backcurrants, mintyness, espresso and plum, her moreish chocolate box flavours are beautifully balanced by crisp morello acidity and supported by grippy, savoury tannins.

Fashioned from the pick of parcels, a collation of deep, dry farmed old vines grown to deep Blewitt Spring sands, conjoined with harvests from the balmy Biscay clays on the coast of Gulf St Vincent. Grenache plays the leading role, a dark cherry lift with a seductive mid palate, Shiraz contributes juicy mouth feel, dark fruits and earthy olive tapenade characters. Sagrantino, adds beautiful dry earth, cigar box-like savoury lift with those signature tannins giving a drying, snappy finish.

Since 1979 Maxwell have built a reputation for producing hand made, rich and robust red wines that combine exquisite fruit quality with structure and finesse. Shiraz is a specialty and their superlative efforts have brought Maxwell much acclaim for their definitive McLaren Vale regionality and purity of expression. The shared sentiment around the Maxwell wineworks, is that life's too short to drink bad wine. A generously proportioned Shiraz with excellent depth of flavour, long, velvety tannins and splendid palate length.

Named for the labyrinthine conifer maze along old Ellen Street adjacent to the Maxwell wineworks, Minotaur is a McLaren Vale icon, treated to a minimalist old world vinification and two years repose in a selection of the finest French oak puncheons. Exquisitely perfumed with dark tarry fruit bouquets, cherries, cigar box and caravan spice, its voluminous palate continues to unravel layers of complexity as the wine breathes and evolves. Fewer than 200 dozen are ever vintaged, an immense Shiraz of power, purity and persistence.

In 1871 Scottish scientist James Clerk Maxwell proposed a thought experiment which involved a hypothetical creature known to physicists as Maxwell's little demon, it has stirred debate in the science community ever since. Maxwell of Mclaren Vale have built a solid reputation for hand made, rich and robust red wines that combine exquisite fruit with solid structure and finesse. Little Demon is a triple entente of Shiraz Grenache and Mourverdre, rich, round and effusive, absolutely exquisite, even in its youth.

From nineteen invaluable rows of Reynella clone Cabernet Sauvignon, the descendants of John Reynell's original import of vine into McLaren Vale circa 1838. Planted to the crest of a cave, excavated 1916 to cultivate mushrooms in the dense limestone bluffs overlooking Maxwell vineyards. Aged twenty months in a high proportion of new French oak hogsheads, the classic Cabernet characters of currant, cherries and cassis, a generously proportioned palate underpinned by soft, chocolatey McLaren Vale tannins and seamlessly integrated cedar vanilla oak.

Experience is a wonderful thing. After many generations of trial and error, the French have learned to make a delicious drink from a harvest of pure Grenache. Maxwell employ the same approach to create a juicy, rich red wine with a gossamer palate. Maxwell's old Grenache vines have grown for nine decades on a classic contoured hill with south facing aspect. They were bush vines with their thick trunks and sprawling arms until a few years ago when they were lifted up and put on a trellis wire to keep them ripening evenly as they grow older.

Single block Shiraz from a parcel of Shiraz clone 1654, planted near the intersection of Olivers and Chalk Hill Roads at the very north of Maxwell vineyards. Deeply influenced by the unique alluvial grey brown loam soils over Tortachilla limestone, Eocene is treated to the luxury of two years age in a selection of the finest French oak hogsheads. Vibrant and animate, highly articulate of its single site provenance, generous with intense weight of fruit, the syrup blackberry, raspberry and plum flavours cascade over the length of opaque, bittersweet chocolate tannins.

Just between the southern estate boundary of Ellen Street and the Maxwell wineworks, a small vineyard of craggy, gnarled Shiraz vines planted 1953 yields a tiny harvest of the most concentrated Shiraz. Matured twenty months in a high proportion of new French and American oak hogsheads, Ellen Street's redolent nose of ripe blood plum, aniseed and vanilla presages a refined palate brimming with the trade spice complexities of old vine McLaren Vale, cinnamon and chocolates, blueberries and clove, all resolving on an expansive, elegant finish.

The enthusiastic team at Marius are focused purely on growing the best possible fruit and retaining the pick of the harvest, with a view to making the best possible wine from these choice grapes. Wines of integrity which can best define the character of Shiraz grown to a unique terroir. To let the vineyard speak.

One of Maglieri's great achievements has been a run of sensational successes at the London International Wine Challenge. Maglieri has twice beaten all comers, to be voted Best Shiraz of the competition. With the high quality of grapes from the estate vineyards, the emphasis during vinification is to preserve the quality of fruit. Maglieri fashions a moreish Shiraz wine exhibiting spiced blackberry, plum and liquorice characters, indulgent like a festive cake, framed by well integrated oak, supported by the most polished, fully compliant tannins.

Maglieri has enjoyed much international success over the past thirty years. With an enviable list of accolades and awards, Maglieri is well known for producing red wines with the greatest poise, full of charm and character, the first growth in pure McLaren Vale Merlot.

Giovanni Maglieri migrated to South Australia 1958 and worked the vineyards at Pirramimma. He bought forty hectares of McLaren Vale scrub in 1965 and set about the task of clearing land to establish vines. The quality of Maglieri wines rose dramatically, by the early 1990s Maglieri was well positioned within the pantheon of first growth McLaren Vale estates. A classically structured, engagingly complex wine which displays great depth of colour, luscious aromas and intensity of palate, easily one of the most essential examples in McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon.

Leconfield occupies some of the Coonawarra's richest Terra rosa over limestone soils, a composition that's idyllic for vintages of superior new world Shiraz. The aim is to craft a wine endowed with great palate depth and weight of fruit whilst retaining elegance, where oak complexes and enhances the fruit but is not allowed to dominate. Several components of Leconfield complete their fermentations in barrel while the balance is treated to extra time on skins before pressing and filling into the highest quality French oak for an extravagant, extended maturation.

Koltz, winner of the Small Vignerons Award, is a small fifty tonne winery located within the elite Blewitt Springs appellation of McLaren Vale. All wines are estate grown and crafted, the operation is very much hands on. Shiraz was the estate's first effort, produced in small volumes, from fruit grown to a small but very special block of vine. Characterized by blueberry and earth characters, elegant with velvety tannins and superb length. Extended maceration contributes to the complexity, the aim being to construct a Shiraz which reflects the excellence of site.

A vineyard of great historical import, Hillside was initially planted in 1892 with stock acquired from sites owned by the Thomas Hardy Wine Company. A redevelopment of the eastern slope at Hillside commenced on the centenary, transferring cuttings across from the hundred year old Kay Brothers Block 6. Hillside Shiraz is about as old fashioned in the Australian claret style of wine as you can get, crafted from intensely flavoured berries, hand picked off seminal vines, treated to a traditional, open fermentation and manual basket press.

The Heritage listed Kay Brothers Amery celebrated its first grape crush in 1895 and is the oldest McLaren Vale winery still in founding family hands. The precious vineyards are planted exclusively to cuttings from the original 1892 Block 6 Shiraz site. The Block 6 clone, from which all Kay Brothers Amery Shiraz vines are derived, is unique in that it consistently provides fruit that makes superior, long lived wines. A fully approachable Shiraz with massive concentration of fruit, by a cult winery which continues to deliver world class wine.

Cuthbert Thornborough Kay saw service in World War II, he was an ardent enthusiast of full bodied reds and established the finest Cabernet blocks in all McLaren Vale. The Kay Brothers cellar door, which is part of the original Amery Vineyards wineworks, boasts some stunning panoramic views of the surrounding picturesque valleys and hillsides. It was selected, as much for its scenic views of McLaren Vale, as it was for the fortuitous soils and magnificent winegrowing climes. A beautifully composed, decidedly regional articulation of McLaren Cabernet Sauvignon.

Crafted from precious parcels of old vines Shiraz cropped at one or two tons per acre, vinified in a collection of ancient open top fermenters. In 1891 Herbert and Frederick Kay planted 30,000 Shiraz vine cuttings, originating from the Thomas Hardys McLaren Vale Tintara Vineyard. Tintara was planted in the 1850s by Dr A.C. Kelly who probably obtained the vine cuttings from his Trinity Vineyard at Morphett Vale. Dr Kelly drew his original planting material from the Busby collection, through sources in Europe and quite likely from other local viticulturalists circa 1842.

The establishment of Block 6 commenced in 1892, upon completion some six thousand vines grew on the fertile soils of Kay's Amery property. Of the original twelve acres only four remain today, approximately 2,000 vines. Up to vintage 1987 the dry grown bush vines were spread out rather haphazardly, pumpkin patch style. Most are original plantings, replacements have been made by layering from adjacent vines. The layering procedure has been used at Amery Vineyards since the 1890s, a slow but sure way of replacing a missing plant among the vines.

Outstanding Langtons Classification. In 1891 Herbert and Frederick Kay ordered 30,000 cuttings of Shiraz from the Thomas Hardy Tintara Vineyard. The original plantings were dry grown and pruned to bush vines, neglected over time they grew into something of a tangled mess, fondly referred to as the pumpkin patch. Today, Kay Brothers have returned to the precious Block 6 and take aim at a timeless representation of Australian Shiraz, rich, impenetrable and packed with flavour, fashioned from the fuit of vines with a provenance that's second to none.

Everything made at the Kay Brother wineworks gets a passage through the estate's famous eighty year old basket press, a gentle treatment which achieves exquisite palate softness. The unique expression of vintage is preserved each year by a delicate balance in the mix of new and prior use oak barrels. One of McLaren Vale's first vineyards, the Amery property was initially sown to seven acres of vine in the 1860s. The brothers Kay acquired the land in 1891, introducing plantings from Hardy's Tintara, four precious acres which remain productive to this day.