2002 Torbreck "Run Rig" Shiraz Barossa Valley South Australia

“Extraordinarily opulent and rich, but playing it closer to the vest than the 2001, it gets my nod as one of the most remarkable wines made in either the Southern or Northern Hemisphere. An inky/purple color is accompanied by a sumptuous bouquet of apricots, honeysuckle, black raspberries, blackberries, licorice, and a hint of roasted meats. The wood has been soaked up by the wine’s extraordinary concentration. The wood has been soaked up by the wine’s extraordinary concentration. Fashioned from four sectors of Barossa (Maranaga, Koonunga Hill, Moppa, and Greenock), it spent 30 months in primarily new oak, and was bottled without fining or filtration. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2020+. (RP)” (10/2005)

“Medium-bodied; fragrant, elegant style with lifted aromatics and a finely drawn, structured and balanced palate; smoky blackberry fruit with just a hint of apricot; fine, long tannins. High quality cork. (Tasted 3/2005)” (07/2011)

“(includes 3% viognier) Saturated, inky, opaque ruby. A ripe, roasted, porty black hole of a nose. Impossibly ripe, musky, dense aromas of dark cherry, cassis compote, blackberry confit, molasses, fruitcake, violet pastille, licorice and candied rose petal. Thick to the point of being a solid, or at least a colloid, with dense, inky, even resinous flavors of bitter chocolate, creme de mure, coffee liqueur, licorice and black cardamom, accompanied by a spice rack of accents. The finish seems to never let go, which in this case is a good thing. Sticky, palate-staining and amazingly dense, a monument to this style of syrah. (JR)” (07/2005)

“This lauded wine is made from Shiraz vines of between 100 and 156 years old, apparently, and contains 3 per cent Viognier, right from the pioneering first vintage 1995. You can certainly smell the Viognier on the nose. The wine is incredibly full, rich and sweet with a sensation of wild purple fruit flavours and more than a hint of elderberries. Subtle it ain't, and it's still disjointed on the palate but it's amazingly persistent and vibrant. I can quite see why it has such a devoted following. 18/20 points (JR)” (07/2005)