2023 Tomfoolery Artful Dodger Shiraz, Barossa Valley

Deep, bright purple colour with similarly bright, fresh, and concentrated essency aromas of dark chocolate-coated licorice 'bullets', mocha/espresso coffee and a large ingredient of which is oak. The palate is more of the same: powerfully intense mocha, chocolate, black fruits and toasty oak. This is a shiraz of intensity and drive, which avoids heaviness and the finish is all about fruit, not oak. Cellaring will reward. Drink 2027 to 2038.

92 points Huon Hooke for The Real Review, December 2025

The Artful Dodger Shiraz was Tomfoolery's very first wine in 2004 and remains the label's flagship. Behind it is Ben Chipman, who was mentored by some of the Barossa's most respected names before venturing out on his own project. He and his wife Sarah purchased their property on the eastern slopes of the Barossa in 2011 and built the winery in 2014.

Fruit is sourced from an eighty-year-old vineyard in the Seppeltsfield subregion, grown by the sixth-generation Mattschoss family. The flat site sits at 255 metres elevation on predominantly alluvial loam and red clay over limestone and ironstone. Dry grown old vines are cropped at naturally low yields and produce fruit of the concentration and character that keeps defining this wine.

The fruit is handpicked based on its flavour profile ensuring overall balance. It is destemmed at the winery, keeping as many whole berries as possible, then open fermented wild yeasts for a minimum of five days with the juice being pumped over the skins twice daily. Gentle basket press follows when the wine has fermented dry, with maturation for 24 months thereafter in seasoned French oak barriques. The wine is not fined or filtered.

The 2023 is a wine of real depth and generosity. Rich dark cherry and blackcurrant lead the nose, supported by layers of spice, mocha and a subtle earthiness that speaks to the age of the vines and the character of the site. The palate is full and plush, with dark fruits building steadily through the mid-palate, anchored by fine, compact tannins and a long, velvety finish. There is enough freshness here to keep everything in balance and to suggest this will improve with time.

Bold enough to stand up to a slow-roasted lamb shoulder and substantial enough to reward patience in the cellar.