2020 Parker Estate Kidman Block Shiraz, Coonawarra

Matured in 50% new French oak for 19 months. This stands like a bouncer at the door of a nightclub, all sinew and muscle and brawn, black t-shirt (or label) and all. It offers dense blackcurrant-driven fruit, big bones of tannin, rippled mouthfeel and complexity in the form of ash, woodsmoke and tobacco characters. It almost makes you want to squeeze the shoulder of the bottle, to see if you can feel its bulging fruit. One thing is for certain: this wine walks the talk, delivering the kind of rock-solid complexity, structure and fruit that will see it age (beautifully) over the long term.

95 points Erin Larkin, Halliday Wine Companion

Parker Coonawarra Estate has been part of the region’s modern story since John Parker established the estate in 1985, inspired by the great Cabernet-based wines of Bordeaux. Kidman Block turns the spotlight onto Shiraz, grown on Coonawarra’s famous terra rossa soils over limestone. Here, the region’s cool southerly climate gives Shiraz a distinctly elegant personality — dark-fruited and spicy rather than simply big and bruising.

The 2020 vintage produced beautifully concentrated fruit, with Coonawarra’s cool nights helping retain freshness and aromatic detail. The free-draining terra rossa soils encourage deep root systems, while the underlying limestone and maritime influence bring structure and restraint. With several years in bottle, the wine is beginning to move beyond youthful fruit into more savoury territory.

Deep crimson with garnet edges, the nose opens with blackberry, black cherry and dark plum, followed by violet, cracked pepper and dried herbs. With air come smoked meat, liquorice, dark chocolate and a little earthy spice. The palate is generous without becoming heavy, with dark fruit wrapped in fine, savoury tannins and fresh acidity. Black pepper and cocoa build through the middle before a long finish of plum, spice and cool earth.

This wants something smoky and satisfying: slow-roasted lamb shoulder with rosemary, chargrilled rib eye with peppercorn sauce, sticky beef short ribs, venison sausages or a mushroom and taleggio pie. Cellaring: Drink now to 2035.