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Ray Jordan rates 10 wines 90-98 Points

Renowned West Australian wine writer, Ray Jordan, has rated 10 Château Tanunda wines 90-98 points on the Wine Pilot platform.

Leading the way again was the The Everest Shiraz 2021 with a 98 Point rating, followed by the 100 Year Old Vines Shiraz 2021 with 96 points (both due for release in July 2025).

FULL REVIEWS:

Chateau Tanunda Grand Barossa Dry Riesling 2024

Riesling was very good this year and it shows all its virtues in this excellent wine from the Barossa. Crisp and dry it opens with a floral lime and lemon combination on the nose. The palate has a degree of tension but there is nice texture and weight delivered with a fine precise acidity.

Score: 91/100                                     Cellar: 8 years

Chateau Tanunda Grand Barossa Chardonnay 2023

A neat example of chardonnay for short-term drinking. The aromas are a combination of melon and stone fruit with just a splash of citrus to lift. The palate is creamy and rich with a nice nutty stone fruit nuance. Has a crunchy lively feel and a long finish. Best in the short term.

Score: 91/100                                     Cellar: 5 years

Chateau Tanunda Grand Barossa Grenache Shiraz Mourvedre 2023

A wine that positively bursts with Barossa fruit. Plums, blackberry and cherry all burst from the nose with a subtle pepper and spice. The palate is soft and generous but well-held and controlled with a fine layer of oak and infused tannins. A polished and complete wine.

Score: 92/100                                     Cellar: 8 years

Chateau Tanunda Grand Barossa Cabernet Sauvignon 2022

A thick and rich cabernet loaded with masses of dark black fruits, dark chocolate and a generous vanilla bean character. The palate is a medium weight but with plenty of concentrated depth. Rich and flavoursome with a sustained finish.

Score: 90/100                                     Cellar: 9 years

Chateau Tanunda Grand Barossa Shiraz 2022

This is a thoroughly delicious Barossa shiraz. It’s more medium weight and there is less tannin and oak. But it’s all so balanced with loads of blackberry and spicy plum with a liberal dollop of syrupy chocolate. Fine slippery tannins and a decent oak contribution complete an excellent value wine.

Score: 92/100                                     Cellar: 10 years

Chateau Tanunda The Chateau Single Vineyard Grenache 2023

A bright and highly scented grenache that comes off handpicked vines in Bethany within the Barossa. It’s a region that produces fruit of great character and poise with medium weight and highly scented aromas. All of that has been captured in this excellent wine. Seamless and pretty with good depth and flavour. A lot to like here.

Score: 93/100                                     Cellar: 9 years

Chateau Tanunda Terroirs of the Barossa Ebenezer District Shiraz 2022

This is a region that manages to produce wines of tremendous power but with polish and poise built on elegance and restraint. The aromas show a combination of spicy red and some blue fruits underpinned by a healthy blackberry contribution. There’s a typical regional ferruginous character and subtle earthy nuances contributing to its complex detailed presentation. A most stylish wine.

Score: 94/100                                     Cellar: 12 years

Chateau Tanunda Terroirs of the Barossa Greenock Shiraz 2022

This is just delicious. You want to get another glass. It’s a soft and generous wine with ripe mulberry and dark plum characters liberally sprinkled with spices and subtle dried herbs. The palate has a steely minerally thread through its lavish combination of dark chocolate and ripe plum. Tannins have a slightly chalky edge to provide balance.

Score: 93/100                                     Cellar: 15  years

Chateau Tanunda 100 Year Old Vines Shiraz 2021

This is such a silky smooth and seductively expressed shiraz from this outstanding Barossa vintage. The aromas gently release a compelling combination of spices and nutmeg over dark plum and syrupy dark chocolate notes. The palate is so lush and supple, yet there is power here with the fine driving tannins and oak harnessing through to a very long finish. These old Barossa vines are something special and when you see a wine like this you understand why they are so highly prized.

Score: 96/100                                     Cellar: 20 years

Chateau Tanunda The Everest Shiraz 2021

Just about everything is done by hand to make this wonderful expression of what the Barossa can offer the world. From the vineyard to the winery, it’s a hands-on approach including hand plunging to coax the flavour and tannins to do their things. It’s a tiny production wine bottle unfined and unfiltered. So it’s almost a direct line to the vineyards of the old Barossa. Dark fruit swirls through a sumptuous palate loaded with spicy plum and, dark chocolate. Yes, it’s a powerful wine but such is its balance that it releases with real poise and polish. Outstanding wine from a great vintage.

Score: 98/100                                     Cellar: 25 years

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