2022 Greenock Creek Apricot Block Shiraz, Barossa Valley

Deep magenta/purple. As per the estate style, off-the-charts fruit purity here. Doris plum, dark cherry and blueberry fruits of considerable concentration and ripeness. Layers of baking spices, dark chocolate, crème de cassis, vanilla bean, cedar, pipe tobacco, dried citrus, quince paste, brandied fruits and nutty oak. Full bodied with fine, cascading tannins and a real sense of latent power. Drink to 2038.

95 points Dave Brookes for Halliday Wine Companion, August 2024

This stunning 2022 single vineyard Marananga Shiraz is a sophisticated and enthralling Shiraz from the Greenock Creek stable although a much more elegant package. Beautiful vibrancy and energy of fruit with layers of new leather, violets and musky plum with some seriously fine oak in the mix. Punchy flavours, in a slightly riper expression but the shape is what I love most – seamless and pure with a firm stream of tannins. A triumph. Drink to 2045.

95 points Angus Hughson for Wine Pilot, June 2024

An enticing nose of sweet spices and cured meats with ferrous undertones welcomes you in. A gush of dark berries and sweet spices on the palate leads into a chewy and savoury framework of tannins. For a full-bodied shiraz it offers balance and composure and will age nicely in the cellar. Drink to 2032.

92 points Gabrielle Poy for The Real Review, December 2024

Greenock Creek was established in 1984 by Michael and Annabelle Waugh with a vision of producing terroir led single vineyard expressions of Shiraz. Accumulating a series of old, dry-land, low-yielding Barossa vineyards, they succeeded on a scale few could have imagined.

The Waughs’ retired in 2018, with new owners hiring Alex Peel as the senior winemaker. He has bought a fresh precision to a house style that has always been defined by power, integrity and a fierce respect for site. This has been achieved by small but important adjustments in managing vineyard health and by promoting quality control at every step in the winery.

This beautifully layered wine comes from a former apricot orchard site in Marananga, where the 1995 planted vines standi in complex, silty soils of sandy loam over flint and quartz.