2023 Brokenwood Shiraz, Hunter Valley

An impressive wine of power, clarity and grace that proudly displays the Brokenwood signature. Exceptional fruit, classy, attentive winemaking, palate composure and depth make this one of the most reliable, satisfying, well-priced reds around. The gently spiced fruit is aromatic, dark and intense, with mulberry, damson plum and boysenberry notes, ripe but not overly so. The subtle French oak, evident on pouring, seamlessly integrates into the wine, with fine-grained tannins and balanced acidity providing shape and structure. It strikes a balance between modern and classical styles and is a masterwork in blending, with the grapes sourced exclusively from Brokenwood's managed sites: Graveyard, Oakey Creek, Mistress Block, Verona and the Tallawanta vineyards. Drink to 2033.

96 points (Special Value) Toni Paterson for Halliday Wine Companion, August 2025

Deep and bold red-purple in the glass; Dark chocolate, earth and spice aromas laced with coal-dust. Medium-full bodied with good intensity of flavour and plenty of supple tannins backing up. Very smart shiraz. Easy to enjoy young, but also has potential to age well in the medium term. Drink to 2038.

93 points Huon Hooke for The Real Review, May 2025

Maturation for this typically fragrant and elegant Hunter Shiraz was in French oak, 25% new, with 25% puncheons. The grapes hail from a range of famous vineyards – Graveyard, Oakey Creek, Mistress Block, Verona and Tallawanta. A purple/mauve colour here, the nose offers notes of spices and dried herbs, raspberries, milk chocolate and bay leaves with florals and red fruits throughout. This is almost as good as the Reds beating the ‘tahs. Seamless, with good acidity, the oak impact is minimal and well handled, and there are very fine tannins. This is a wine of immense length. So much to like here, a wine for enjoying over the next eight to ten years. Drink to 2035.

93 points Ken Gargett for Wine Pilot, June 2025

Aromas of dark bramble berries, spices, flint and graphite. Medium-bodied, crunchy and yummy. A fresh and enjoyable shiraz. Drink now.

92 points James Suckling, November 2024

The 2023 Shiraz is juicy and bright, with acidity spiraling through the dark-berry fruits. It's floral (rose petals) and a little bloody, with some sweet cocoa/vanilla notes from the oak. The fruit for this wine comes from the Graveyard vineyard and comprises the younger vines and the declassified 1968 vines that make the Graveyard Shiraz. It is light this year. Drink to 2033.

90 points Erin Larkin for The Wine Advocate, September 2025

About this producer

Hunter Valley based Brokenwood was established in 1970 by Tony Albert, John Beeston, and James Halliday, with first vines planted in Pokolbin the year after. Since the early 1980s fruit sourcing has expanded beyond the Hunter, and today, the well-regarded wines are made from grapes grown in Orange, Central Ranges, Gundagai, Canberra District and Tumbarumba (NSW) as well as Beechworth (VIC), Barossa Valley and McLaren Vale (SA), and finally Margaret River (WA).

The winemaking team is lead by Stuart Hordern and Kate Sturgess, while work in the 64-hectare vineyards is guided by Katrina Barry.