Bondar Hope Springs Eternal Shiraz 2023

If I had to a serve a South Australian shiraz to a European, unversed in Australian wine, then this would be it. Fragrant, with a compote of brambly, red and blueberry fruit, bitter chocolate, Middle Eastern spices, fresh compost, licorice subtle oak. Lucious and sexy, with an intensity and lavishness of fruit that could only be Australian. Wonderful movement and curve, the tannins rich and slinky, driven by terrific acidity. Great wine. Norris at Waters Wine Co

Dark, plummy red in the glass. Fragrant and lifted aromas of spice, bramble, earth, charcuterie, sarsaparilla, blueberry, forest floor and an earthy woodsiness. Full-bodied, punchy and crunchy on the palate. Blue and dark fruits, snappy acidity, granular, grippy tannins and sappy spice are all at play. Long, textured, layered and complex. 95 points, Aaron Brasher, The Real Review

Hope Springs Eternal is a new project for us. It essentially an attempt to produce great wine, from vineyard sites we believe to be amongst the best for that variety in the region. For Shiraz, this means Clarendon, with old vines and altitude giving deep fruit and tannin yet elegance. Sourced from the Hickinbotham vineyard in Clarendon. Farmed biodynamically, dry grown, rocky red, ironstone rich soils, planted in 1971. This is a revered site in McLaren Vale, situated much further inland than our Rayner Vineyard, and at 250m altitude, this is a very different expression of Shiraz. Finer, with ferrous quality and red fruits, there is a tightness and coiled power.