Fortified

Swan Valley

Fortified

Oh my, what a wonderful example of a liqueur style that the Swan Valley does so well. The colour has that deep caramel and a slight hint of khaki on the edges. You open with an aroma of remarkable complexity, with toffee and roasted coffee beans, dark raisins and syrupy caramel all swirling around and capturing your attention. And then...

Swan Valley

Muscat

Wow, it's hard to imagine anything better than this. This is pure luxury. Griffiths has been following his muscat quest for many years and started this blend back in 2003. You can see it in the colour, which has deep browny, khaki, and slightly olive green hues, which indicate the incredible age. The aroma is a layered maze of complexity...

Margaret River

Muscat

Wow. I mean, wow. The nose is almost overwhelming. But the colour has those deep brownie, khaki and slightly olive-green colours and hues that you get with very old wine. And then a nose that brings together an exotic mix of spices, toffee, caramel and chocolate in a captivating combination. The palate is unctuous, rich, dense and concentrated, with a...

Margaret River

Muscat

The colour is extraordinary: deep brownie, tawny, liquid caramel. The nose goes into another rarefied area, with layers of deep complexity: lush fruitcake, macerated raisin, dark chocolate and a little toffee. And then the palate shows that old-wine influence, but there is a freshness and vibrancy that gives it brightness through to a very, very long finish. Beautifully balanced, combining...

Margaret River

Red Blend

The colour is deep, with a browny, burnt-caramel meniscus that is classically tawny. The aroma is complex, with florals, coffee, rich caramel, dark chocolate and slightly raisiny complexity. The palate shows just the earliest hints of rancio, reflecting its older-wine influence, with some nice roasted toffee and slightly savoury notes as well. And that dry, finishing spirit defines the style.

Margaret River

Red Blend

This is a 50th-anniversary release for Gralyn. It's a combination of cabernet, shiraz and malbec. The colour is quite brilliant, with a pinkish ruby-red tone. The nose has delightful florals with cherries and chocolate, a little violet and some rose-petal nuances. The palate is light-bodied, with a fruit sweetness balanced with excellent spirit and some fine natural acidity. It's a...

Swan Valley

Muscat

This luscious, fabulous muscat from the Swan Valley remains a work in progress, in that when the vintage is right it is blended back into the older wine that dates back over many years. This is as good a blend as I have tasted. Raisiny, caramel, dark toffee, spice and dark chocolate. The colour is even starting to develop a...

Geographe

Muscat

So good to see this great style maintained at St. Aidan. Matured in French oak for up to 20 years, it displays all the luscious raisiny, toffee-like characters you expect. There’s an appealing lift of orange peel and spice, while the palate is pure pleasure, rich, unctuous, and thoroughly delicious.

Perth Hills

Fortified

A wonderful example of this famous style of Spain. Layer upon layer of complex fruits based on ageing and topping over many years to achieve a wine of extraordinary depth and concentration. Toffee, raisings, a little orange peel and a rich butterscotch. This is a marvellous way to finish a meal.

Swan Valley

Muscat

This is an extraordinary example of liqueur muscat from the Swan Valley. There are obviously stacks of old material in here, and yet it's been freshened with more recent additions. Hence, the result is a supremely balanced wine, where the combination of old rancio luscious complexity is elevated by some lovely, more recent florals. Totally beguiling combination of toffee, honeycomb,...

Swan Valley

Muscat

Glorious statement of this famous Swan valley style. Multi-layered complexity of toffee and luscious honey and raisins. There's stone fruit vanilla bean and licorice swirling through the thick unctuous palate. Has been freshened with some younger material to add some zip to the finish. Average age of the wine is 20 years with the base blend of vintages between 1974...

Margaret River

Muscat

A glorious expression of one of the great wine styles of Australia. It's loaded with rich dark fruits, releasing a combination of butterscotch, raisiny fruitcake, a little orange peel, and, of course, a lifted spiciness. It's developed over many years a slightly rancio complexity, which is what you want in this style, and it is multi-layered and complex. Multi-layered and...

Margaret River

Fortified

A sublime liqueur muscat displaying all the layered complexity, mouth-filling, rich concentrated flavours and that sleek viscosity of the style. All manner of goodies await with raisin, caramel and toffee, and a little of that liqueur orange addition. The palate displays great balance with the spirit lifting and driving a sensationally long This is as good as it gets for...

Margaret River

Muscat

This is a luscious and beautiful, fortified wine that comes off unirrigated 64-year-old vines. The colour is quite pale, but the aromas are immediately captivating with a mix of orange peel, florals, even a little butterscotch, and then the palate releases with a rich and flavoursome flavour profile. The spirit and fruit balance is superb. I think this is a...

Perth Hills

Red Blend

The warm vintage has suited this style of vintage fortified wine. It's about 76% touriga, with a balance of shiraz, durif, and cabernet. It was made in the typical vintage style, and was bottled just six months after the initial maturation. And the result is a wine that retains its vibrancy and energy, but with the boost, of brandy spirit,...

Swan Valley

Muscat

Oh, yes, we're in a heady zone here with a wine that speaks of the Swan Valley. The colour immediately suggests some age, and then the aromas lift with typical dark chocolate, fruitcake, and rich butterscotch with a slightly violet crumble character. The palate is deeply layered and intense, with extraordinary complexity that builds on the Solera system of blending...

Swan Valley

Verdelho

Not only is this one of the great wines of the Swan Valley, it is one of the great wines of Australia. Liqueur verdelho has found a home in the valley many years ago, and this example is absolutely stunning - a perfect example of the fortified style that the warm climes of Western Australia do so well. The aroma...

Margaret River

Cabernet Sauvignon

Cabernet is the grape of choice for this outstanding vintage fortified. The colour is deep but with bright crimson hues. It’s medium-bodied and elegantly structured with aromas of cherry and mulberry supplemented with dark chocolate. The palate is so seamless and elegant with a lovely lifted spirit. It’s a thoroughly engaging example of this style with plenty of time to...

Swan Valley

Muscat

From one of the great names in Australian fortified wines. The base wine for this great liqueur muscat was picked in 1983 after which the best vintages were chosen to be regularly blended. It is a smooth and mellow wine with all the complex and intrigue of caramel, honey and chocolate swirling through the aromas and then into a multi-layered...

Swan Valley

Shiraz

The blend for this remarkable liqueur shiraz began in 1981 and now includes 15 different vintages. The wines are blended in old brandy casks and now reveal aromas of concentrated dark chocolate, coffee, caramel and raisiny toffee. It’s dense and multi-layered with richness and complexity that builds relentlessly to a very long finish.

Swan Valley

Muscat

This luscious, fabulous muscat from the Swan Valley remains a work in progress, in that when the vintage is right it is blended back into the older wine that dates back over many years. This is as good a blend as I have tasted. Raisiny, caramel, dark toffee, spice and dark chocolate. The colour is even starting to develop a...

Swan Valley

Muscat

Rich and unctuous wine made from Swan Valley muscadelle. Aromas of toffee and caramel with a high spirity tone adding lift. The palate is rich with a typical muscat texture. Good palate length from a mid palate of complexity

Swan Valley

Fortified

I remember my first tasting of this this wine many years ago. It was life changing and I’ve been a fan of these Swan Valley fortifieds ever since. Rich and lavishly complex with caramel and dark chocolate with liqueur orange and fruit cake aromas. The palate builds a multi-layered complex richness displaying those leathery, dark fruit cake and syrupy chocolate...

Swan Valley

Verdelho

Liqueur verdelho is one of the remarkable wines of the Swan Valley. It also shows the extraordinary versatility of a variety that can on the one hand be fresh and fruity and on the other – well, this. A rich and unctuous fortified wine of breathtaking depth and richness. Layer upon layer of toffee, honeycomb and rich raisin fruit. The...

Perth Hills

White Varietal

Great to see this fortified coming from Myattsfield. It's made from pedro ximenez and has been blended over several vintages. The aromas are so typical with those notes of honey and toffee with a rich caramel character. The palate is rich with a subtle honeycomb and honey with a slight spicy flair. Clean neutral spirit contributes to its fresh vibrant...

Swan Valley

Verdelho

The base wine of this is 93 through to 2018. This is a classic Swan Valley madeira style liqueur fortified wine. Loads of toffee and marzipan in the solera system. Deeply intense and rich with an unctuous mouthfeel. Has an almost khaki colour on the edges. Traces of toffee and chocolate with a fine persistent acid adding direction. This is...

Swan Valley

Fortified

A glorious statement of Swan Valley fortified wine using verdelho, one of the staple varieties of the region. The wine is aged for many years in old oak allowing it to deepen and concentrate to eventually release a wine of remarkable complexity. Toffee, dried apricot and maple syrup with a caramel richness adding even more depth. Just wonderful.

Margaret River

Fortified

Wonderful example of the fortified style that was previously called Vintage Port. In this case the logical choice of fruit was Swan valley shiraz. The ripe red fruit with its traces of spices and chocolate has been beautifully fortified with excellent spirit. The result is a wine with natural sweetness but with the controlled linear structure for the style. Seamless...

Margaret River

Fortified

A medium bodied elegant and so exotically perfumed vintage fortified style. Bright red fruits on the nose with cherry and mulberry and a slightly spicy lift. The palate is seamlessly woven together, displaying excellent fruit and nice use of spirit. Drinks well now but another 10 years would see it develop nicely.

Margaret River

Muscat

This has been a long-term project for Kevin McKay over many years. There's some nice older material in here that's been blended with newer vintages to create a beautiful example of the style. Complex already with raisins, liqueur cumquat and dark chocolate with a caramel richness. The spirit has been beautifully applied to create a fortified style of concentration with...

Swan Valley

Muscat

Glorious statement of this famous Swan valley style. Multi-layered complexity of toffee and luscious honey and raisins. There's stone fruit vanilla bean and licorice swirling through the thick unctuous palate. Has been freshened with some younger material to add some zip to the finish. Average age of the wine is 20 years with the base blend of vintages between 1974...

Margaret River

Fortified

A champion of fortified production in the heart of cabernet and chardonnay country. Just shows what can be done. This bridges the old and new word divide with a little sweet fruit but a drier old-world finish. Spices and caramel toffee with a little sprinkle of cocoa. It has a focussed acute palate that extends to a super long finish....

Margaret River

Muscat

A very good example of this style of wine displaying more of the bright primary fruit to lift the wine. Has developed a high degree of lusciousness with ripe caramel and honeyed dried fruits. Multi-layered and deep and concentrated with a warm palate-coating viscosity. Has started to show some classic muscat rancio which comes with extended ageing in old oak...