2023 De Iuliis Steven Vineyard Shiraz, Hunter Valley

The Hunter red from the rather dramatic La Niña-influenced 2023 season are starting to emerge and seem to be rewarding early optimism. Despite occasionally heavy downpours experienced during the first part of the season, late summer and autumn turned dry, with low yields of fruit maturing at a steady pace. The better 2023 Hunter Shirazes show classic regional style with great colour, lovely aromas and intense fruit flavours.

The Steven Vineyard Shiraz might be a good candidate for current drinking compared to de Iuliis’ Limited Release Shiraz which also features fruit from this historic site, but it is still a young wine worth pouring into a decanter if patience is not your virtue.

Lamb shoulder rubbed with Ras el hanout would work nicely with a younger bottle, while a mature wine would pair beautifully with the more refined Cantonese preparations of quails and duck.

More about this wine

The fruit for this wine comes from fruit grown in the well-regarded 12-hectare Steven Vineyard in the heart of the Pokolbin district in Hunter Valley (not to be confused with the nearby Stevens family vineyard, a long-time source for Tyrrells’s).

Known for its deep volcanic clay and limestone soils, the site was originally planted in 1968 by Lindemans and was the foundational source for their Bin series Semillon and Shiraz wines made by Hunter-legend Karl Stockhausen.

Sourcing fruit from the then Roche-family-owned site since 2005, the de Iuliis family purchased this vineyard in 2013 and has since introduced Chardonnay and Pecorino to its varietal mix. The fruit from it is primarily used for to produce site specific bottlings.

About this producer

A relatively recent addition to Hunter Valley, de Iuliis has gradually grown from its 1987 beginnings when Joss and Anna de Iuliis purchased a then cattle station off Lovedale Road in Pokolbin. After several years of soil regeneration work their first Semillon and Chardonnay vines were planted in 1999.

Today, second generation Mike de Iuliis leads the work at the winery as well as the three estate vineyards in Lovedale, Pokolbin and Rothbury. The varietal mix includes Hunter Valley classics Semillon, Verdelho, Chardonnay and Shiraz, complemented by Touriga Nacional, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot and the more recently planted Pecorino and Montepulciano, both native to the Abruzzo region of Italy where the de Iuliis family originates.