Red Wine from Australia

96 points: Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2013 Amon Ra has youthfully toned-down notes of blackcurrants, blackberry preserves, plums and cracked pepper with nuances of licorice, dark chocolate, cedar and black earth.The palate...

Wine Front, 95 points: It just goes to show that “big” doesn’t have to mean either unbalanced or oak-driven. This is all or mostly about rich, black berried fruit and raking tannin, the end then lengthy and fresh. It’s not over-the-top but it’s...

James Halliday, 96 points: This is the product of a joint venture between Chapoutier and Giaconda. Good colour; a very complex wine, with an array of spice, sweet leather, earth and smoked meat aromas, the medium-bodied palate picking up on all of...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 96 points: Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2006 Cluster M45 has quite a meaty nose with game hints over black cherry pie and blackberry preserves notes plus nuances of of black loam and chargrill. Full-bodied and richly fruited with...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 96 points: 96+ Medium to deep garnet-purple in color, the 2012 Ergo Sum Shiraz displays a lovely red berry, raspberry and Bing cherry nose with notes of roses, violets, lavender, wild thyme and pepper. Medium-bodied, tight-knit and...

jamessuckling.com, 100 points: The 2010 Grange arrives with much expectation and does not disappoint. This is a powerhouse, structurally superior to both the 2009 and 2008 vintages and breathtakingly dense, long and precise. The nose has cola...

James Halliday, 94 points: 119-year-old vines have produced a shiraz with very good colour; the bouquet offers leather, spice and dark chocolate, the rippling black and red fruit flavours with exactly the right amount of fine tannins, 20 months in...

Wine Spectator, 95 points: Dense, deep and brooding, delivering a complex mouthful of coffee-accented cherry, boysenberry, roasted meat and licorice flavors that meld together harmoniously and extend into the long, expansive finish. Tannins are...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 98 points: 98+ Very deep purple-black colored, Torbreck's 2010 The Laird offers an extraordinary perfume of Chinese five spice, sandalwood, rose petals, espresso and licorice over a core of prunes, dried mulberries and blackcurrant...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 93 points: 2011 was of course a difficult, uncharacteristically rainy vintage in South Australia and particularly Barossa, but thanks to Penfolds’ privileged position with access to some of the region’s best fruit, they have...

Wine Spectator, 92 points: Ripe and smooth, with a supple texture supporting dark berry, black currant and savory spice flavors that extend into a long, deep finish. Offers intensity and presence. Drink now through 2020. 125 cases imported. –HS

James Halliday, 94 points: Good colour; a complex wine with an unusual, albeit pleasing, progression of aromas and flavours: hints of spice and mint, then dark berry fruits on the mid-palate, and finally a rising swell of earthy/licorice/liqueur...

Wine Enthusiast, 98 points: Full-bodied and plush yet vibrant and imbued with fresh fruit, this is simply superb. The oak is present but never dominant, adding brown sugar and cinnamon elements to blueberry, roasted meat, espresso and black olive...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 94 points: 94+ This is a superb example of a blending of Australian and French cultures as well as winemaking from tightly spaced, dry-farmed vineyards that have achieved great ripeness and intensity in the Cambrian soils of this...