With the dust now well and truly settled on the sensational exit of Torbreck’s founding force Dave Powell, it is good to once again focus on the story of the wine. And these latest releases are among their best to date. This is a winery that long ago ceased being a one-man band and there’s a skillful team delivering impressively across all areas of the business.
Spanning the 2014 and 2013 vintages, there’s a sense of coherence and polish that overlays each of these newly-released wines. And instead of dialing back their swagger and individuality and potentially shaving off some of their unique interest, the effect is completely the opposite. These wines have never been more convincing.
These wines are a part of a larger regional journey too. The Barossa has been through a significant transition in terms of red wine styles, something that has seen the best makers (and I count Torbreck among them) strike a better sense of balance and liveliness, whilst still delivering on the innately ripe and powerful character that has made Barossa shiraz so highly regarded.
Starting with the Juveniles and Woodcutters bottlings, built around grenache and shiraz respectively, Juveniles makes a case for thirst-inducing, crunchy and sapid fast enjoyment. Woodcutters Shiraz has a level of depth and a hearty, generous and soulful feel that strikes at the core of the synergy between shiraz and the Barossa Valley.
Further up the scale you’ll find wines that demonstrate a consistent ability to bring richness and depth into play, a prolific sense of concentration and opulence and simultaneously retain a keen sense of balance. The Factor is my early pick if you want to dive into something on release, the 2013 is really superb.
The wines are arranged by score from highest to lowest; click on wine names for tasting notes and scores if you are a subscriber.
Torbreck Shiraz Barossa Valley RunRig 2013
Torbreck Barossa Valley The Factor 2013
Torbreck Barossa Valley Descendant 2013
Torbreck Eden Valley The Gask 2013
Torbreck Barossa Valley The Struie 2014
Torbreck Barossa Valley Woodcutter’s Shiraz 2014
Torbreck Barossa Valley Cuvée Juveniles 2014
Photo: New releases of Torbreck wines
– Nick Stock
Nick is a renowned Australian wine writer, author, presenter and filmmaker who reports on his worldwide wine tasting experiences for JamesSuckling.com.
