2019 Two Hands Yacca Block Single Vineyard Shiraz, Eden Valley

For mine the best of the 2019 Single Vineyard Series, Yacca Block is made with fruit from relatively young vines in the Eden Valley. What Eden Valley provides is a finer and more detailed edge to the typically rich Two Hands style. The wine is still unmistakably Two Hands with decadent dark fruit plus plenty of high quality oak. This is offset by a dusting of violets and mixed spice that make it hard to resist. There is then a powerful, yet silky, palate – the fruit rich but beautifully balanced and poised before a long and mouthfilling finish. A superb Eden expression with the structure for a long life ahead. Drink to 2036.

95 points Angus Hughson for Wine Pilot, June 2021

The deep, densely colored 2019 Yacca Block Menglers Hill Shiraz starts off with notes of bay leaf and sage, develops luscious dark-fruit notes of blueberries and blackberries, then turns more savory—black olives and licorice—on the finish. It's full-bodied, rich and concentrated yet remains balanced and refreshing on the long finish. One of the more complex and balanced of the Block wines most vintages, it appears to be a pretty consistent vineyard. Drink to 2035.

95 points Joe Czerwinski for The Wine Advocate, September 2021

Black/blue/purples. Aromas of florals and a freshly baked raspberry pie. Mulberries, spices, leather, warm earth. There is complexity here. The nose is not at all reticent, but it suggests that this is a wine which will need time – the palate confirms this. Seamless and focussed and it has line. Fleshy. Lots of dark chocolate on the finish and those lovely soft tannins. Drink to 2033.

95 points Ken Gargett for Wine Pilot, May 2021

Two Hands is a Barossa Valley based producer established in 1999 to showcase the diversity of Australian Shiraz and to highlight regional and vineyard characteristics by allowing the fruit to take centre stage. In addition to the three estate vineyards in the region, négociant fruit is also bought from long term grower partners within the greater Barossa, Adelaide Hills, McLaren Vale and Clare Valley.

The estate vineyards are managed through numerous sustainable practices that include heavy mulching ahead of the growing season, sap flow monitored sparse irrigation and a resident flock of Scottish Highlander cows that turn grape must into good fertiliser.

The Yacca Block forms the top of the Joel Mattschoss’ well-regarded vineyard in Eden Valley. Surrounded by ancient yaccas - the local name for grass trees - the vines average 20 years in age and have roots in quartz and ironstone at almost 500m altitude.

This wine is from the 2019 vintage, a season where yields were reduced by both frost events and dry conditions but delivering excellent fruit quality.

Fermentation took place in small stainless-steel vessels with frequent pump-overs. Free-run juice and pressings were combined and racked into seasoned French oak barrels for malolactic fermentation and aging for 12 months. The wine is minimally fined but not filtered.

Archetypical Eden Shiraz aromas: perfumed and lifted with notes of violets, blue fruit, mixed baking spice, warm fresh nougat and bilberry pie. Silky rich, the elegant and complex palate delivers what the nose promised. Full-bodied, with a long fresh finish.

Make a night of it with close friends: smoked daikon with whipped tofu-shiro miso paste, tea-smoked duck or charcoal-grilled venison with sansho pepper.