The Torbreck Runrig Shiraz 2014 is a silky and fragrant wine that rewards those with patience. The vintage was challenged by spring frosts in 2013 and a hot dry summer in 2014, followed by rain in early February that delayed the harvest. However, the resulting cooler period in mid-February benefited the vintage with a longer ripening season, producing relatively low yielding fruit of good concentration and depth. Upon opening, intense, lifted aromatics of dense cherry plum and dark chocolate come to the fore with an opulent fruit profile of mulberry and five-spice. The palate is silky textured with deep red cherry fruits, clove and liquorice all interwoven with hints of sweet spice and cinnamon. The layers and diverse fruit characters continue to evolve in the glass with hints of ironstone, anise, blackberry and pepper becoming more persistent in the finish. The wine is a blend of 98.5% Shiraz and 1.5% Viognier sourced from six different vineyards. It spent 30 months on new, second fill and third fill French oak barriques, completing a natural malolactic fermentation in the barrel and resting on fine lees throughout maturation to enhance texture. The wine has crimson and deep purple hues with savoury tones and firm tannins that interplay with a generous, silky, textural mid-palate weight. The finish is firm and persistent, making this wine a great candidate for cellaring for 15 to 20 years.
Deep garnet-purple coloured, the 2014 Run Rig opens with a bang, delivering intense fruits of the forest and blackberry preserve notes with hints of sandalwood, cardamom, dried Provence herbs, Indian spices and garrigue. Full-bodied, rich, concentrated and oh, so satisfying, the beauty ticks all the great Barossa Shiraz boxes and then some. It is still relatively primary, so I’d recommend giving it another 2-3 years at least in bottle and drink it over the next 20+.- Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (September 2017), 97+ Points.
Intense, lifted aromatics of dense cherry plum and dark chocolate all come to the fore with an opulent fruit profile of mulberry and five-spice. A silky textured palate of deep red cherry fruits, clove and liquorice all interwoven with hints of sweet spice and cinnamon. The layers and diverse fruit characters continue to evolve in the glass with hints of ironstone, anise, blackberry, and pepper all becoming more persistent in the finish. This silky, fragrant RunRig will certainly reward those with patience. - Torbreck Vintners