Awards and Accolades

90 Points - Campbell Mattinson, Wine Front
"It’s a mid-weight red with a bit of character. It’s hard to argue with at $18 and under. It tastes of sure-footed blackberry, saltbush, tar, raspberry and earth, while while not especially intense or even compelling it feels as though it’s been made with conviction. Someone believed in this wine and wanted to make it as good as it could be. Reckon they did a pretty god job. Extra points for drinkability/authenticity."

2013 Vintage: Special Value Wine, 90 Points - James Halliday, Wine Companion
"The initial vintage in '64 was the first to show grenache on the label, winning seven trophies and 25 gold medals. This is an exceptionally powerful wine, with fruit, oak and above all, ripe tannins. Not in the usual style, but is likely to sing in 5-10 years. Most will have been drunk by then, of course."

2013 Vintage: Windsor Dobbin, Sunday Examiner, TAS
"A cracking blend of shiraz and grenache grapes from one of the iconic family-owned wineries in McLaren Vale, South Australia. A full-bodied red with plenty of inky fruit flavour and spice, it also finishes with soft plushness. This would be an excellent companion to summer barbeques or well matched with some gourmet sausages, but history shows it also is one of those rare affordable wines that can be comfortably cellared for a decade or more.

From the Winery

A wet winter ensured good subsoil moisture and set up the vines well with healthy canopies. Spring was very dry with above average temperatures, a heavy downpour in January was a welcome relief.
Mild conditions during the ripening period produced wines that show an abundance of spicy fruits with great colour, richness and balanced tannins. Vintage started on 30 January, the earliest start on record by one day.

Small batches of grapes are gently crushed and then transferred to five tonne headed down open fermenters. These batches remain separate until final blending. Foot treading is undertaken two-thirds of the way through fermentation. The wine is then basket pressed and transferred to a mixture of new and used French and old American oak barriques to complete fermentation. The barrel ferments are aged on lees, and there is no racking until final blending. This wine does not undertake fining or filtration prior to bottling.

This wine is named in honour of d’Arenberg principal, d’Arry Osborn, who is a Winemakers Federation of Australia Patron and recipient of the Medal of the Order of Australia. The d’Arry’s Original blend of Shiraz and Grenache was first launched in 1959 named d’Arenberg Burgundy and changed names in the early 1990’s.