2023 Mount Horrocks Nero d'Avola, Clare Valley

Brimming with ripe cherry and black-raspberry fruit, this has none of the earthiness and spiciness of the wines of this grape from its Sicilian homeland. However, all the berry fruit more than makes up for this and is supported by supple tannins on the full-bodied palate. Lovely, velvety finish. Drink or hold.

93 points James Suckling, October 2022

Deep, bright, youthful purple colour; bold and youthful primary fruit of raspberry, red cherry, Italian herb liqueur. The palate is medium-full bodied and intense, bold and bright, with delicious sweetly ripe fruit and soft textured but supportive tannin structure. Juicy middle palate, a succulent wine that drinks well now but also promises to reward keeping. Drink to 2037.

93 points Huon Hooke for The Real Review, April 2025

Mount Horrocks is a Clare Valley producer of fine wines established in 1993 by its winemaker and owner Stephanie Toole.

Her nine hectares of vines are farmed with certified organic and biodynamic practices, with each wine a single vineyard wine from one of her three sites: the dry Riesling, Semillon, Nero d’Avola and Cabernet Sauvignon from her largest one in central Watervale, Shiraz from the Alexander vineyard at 475 metres elevation in the extreme north-eastern corner of Watervale and finally her sweet, Cordon Cut Riesling from Auburn, a warmer site at lower elevations.

Grown in the Mount Horrocks vineyard in Watervale, the handpicked grapes for this wine were fermented in open fermenters, with the wine matured for twelve months in French oak barriques of which 20% were new.