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. Shiraz (93%) and Viognier (7%) grown in Torbreck's own 'Descendant' vineyard next to the Marananga winery. This was planted in 1994 by Dave Powell using cuttings from the RunRig vineyards (where there are some of the oldest vines in the world) and on their own roots.The hand-picked grapes are co-fermented: the Shiraz is crushed directly on top of the Viognier, which has been lightly pressed for use in RunRig. The two varieties are fermented together, and the wine is then matured for 18 months in barrels which have been used for RunRig.

Tasting Notes: Torbreck Descendant 2004 is by far the most 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. Fullbodied with great concentration, silky tannins and perfectly judged extract, this vigorous and suave young wine has a long, long future ahead of it.

Reviews: "Deep ruby. Primary aromas of berry skin, violet, freshly roasted coffee, high-fat chocolate and cinnamon. Very fresh in the mouth, with dense but tangy flavors of cassis, blueberry, mocha and fruitcake. Impressively concentrated and focused wine. With air, this deepened in flavor but gave up nothing in finesse. Finishes sweet and quite long, with an exotic chocolate note and bright acids." 93 Points, Stephen Tanzer, International Wine Cellar.

 
     

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