Torbreck Descendant Shiraz / Viognier

Wine information: Torbreck Vintners was founded in 1994 by David Powell and is located at Marananga on the western ridge of the Barossa Valley. It is named after a forest situated just south of Inverness in the Highlands of Scotland. The roots go back to 1992 when Dave, who was then working at Rockford, began to discover and clean up a few sections of dry-grown old vines, so that he could buy the fruit for his own wine. he first wine made under the Torbreck label was during the 1995 vintage, with the finished wines released in 1997. The wines are made in a style emulating those of the Rhone Valley and are made from various grapes including red grapes Shiraz, Grenache and Mataro as well as white grapes Viognier, Roussanne and Marsanne. The overwhelming majority of his vines are dry-grown, nearly all are 80 - 125 years old and are tended and harvested by hand. The wines have an extraordinary combination of power, intensity, complexity and great finesse. The 2005 Descendant is composed of 92% Shiraz and 8% Viognier which are co-fermented. The fruit is sourced from a relatively young vineyard in Marananga planted with 11-year-old cuttings from the RunRig vineyards and aged for 18 months in 2.5-year-old French barrels previously used for RunRig.

Tasting Notes: Torbreck Descendant Shiraz / Viognier 2005 is another impressive release of this wine, the colour making that immediately apparent; completely black/purple with healthy, vibrant magenta hues. A pure, wild, powerful nose of blackberry and tar is complimented by a gentle floral lift of lavender and violets. Full-bodied with great concentration, silky tannins and perfectly judged extract, this vigorous and suave young wine has a long, long future ahead of it.

Reviews: "The 2005 Descendant is composed of 92% Shiraz and 8% Viognier which are co-fermented. The fruit is sourced from a relatively young vineyard in Marananga planted with 11-year-old cuttings from the Run Rig vineyards and aged for 18 months in 2.5-year-old French barrels previously used for Run Rig. Opaque purple, with glass-coating glycerin, it offers up a complex array of lavender, violets, blueberry, blackberry, and fresh road tar. Full-bodied, on the palate the wine has great concentration with a noticeable uplift from the Viognier, gobs of spicy black fruits, opulence, and well-concealed tannins which will carry this wine for 10-15 years of further evolution. Drink it through 2030. Torbreck, under the leadership of owner/winemaker David Powell, remains a Barossa Valley benchmark as well as one of the world’s greatest wine estates. The top cuvees are limited production and expensive but there are also some outstanding values in the portfolio. With regard to the current vintages for the Barossa red wines, David Powell states “2004 is more savory while 2005 has more purity and definition. 2004 is more classic, 2005 will take longer to come around.” 97 Points, Drink: 2017 - 2030 Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate.

 
     

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