96pts Huon Hooke The Real Review

Intense purple-red colour and a spicy/meaty and dried-herb bouquet, very fragrant for such a big, powerful shiraz, with dried thyme, oregano and mace notes. The palate is powerful, concentrated and the intensity driving and long. There is delicious fruit sweetness and a warming heart to this lovely wine. Great to drink now and for at least 20 years more.

95pts Australian Wine Companion

Shiraz sourced from old vineyards in the Barossa (Krondorf, Tanunda, Marananga, Ebenezer and Moppa) and the Eden Valley. Vibrant and pure at heart with deep black plum, black cherry and boysenberry fruits, plentiful exotic spice, violets, licorice and wafts of light cedar and vanillin oak. Impressive fruit depth, sandy tannin support and long, plush finish of spicy black fruits and earth.

94pts James Suckling

A big and rich wine but it shows freshness and energy underneath the juicy and rather thick fruit with plush tannins. Some chewiness, too. Needs two or three years to soften.

94pts Vinous

This 2021 Shiraz Entity is beautifully composed and sleek, with an engaging energy and brightness of fruit. There is outstanding detail in the form of white paper, cloves, cocoa and woodsmoke aromas with excellent oak integration. Superb flavor precision follows with layers of blackberry and chocolate and a gentle violet lift underpinned by a core of fine yet firm tannins driving through to a long, soaring finish. The 2021 is an exceptional and brilliant value.

94pts Wine Spectator

Aromatic and complex, with a plush, velvety quality to the blackberry, spiced plum and violet details. Reveals huckleberry, black cherry and bittersweet chocolate accents on the long, expressive finish, where details of fresh laurel bay leaf and Earl Grey tea linger.

94pts Wine Enthusiast

Plump blood plum and juicy blackberry aromas are underscored with bay leaf and peppery spice. The succulent dark berry fruit takes front and center on the palate, creating a luscious mouthfeel that’s tightened by a gentle tug of spicy tannins and fresh acidity. Classic South Aussie Shiraz sprinkled with Duval style.

Winemaker Notes

The bouquet features attractive notes of violets, dark berries and plum supported by hints of licorice and a floral lift. On the palate, bright layers of focused red and blue fruits with hints of dark chocolate and peppery spice, finishing long with fine sheets of silky tannins. We intend for the wine to be approachable in its youth, but with ample structure and fruit depth to allow cellaring for at least 15 years.

Winery Notes

John Duval is one of Australia's most highly regarded winemakers. Raised on a South Australian farm with three generations of grape growers before him, his vinous path was fated. However, it was during his 28-year tenure with Penfolds that his passion for the famed Barossa Valley flourished. As Chief Winemaker and custodian of Australia's most famous wine, Grange, he was instrumental in establishing Penfolds as one of the world's great wineries. His accolades include being named UK Wine and Spirit Competition's International Winemaker of the Year, Red Winemaker of the Year (twice) and receiving Wine Spectator's Wine of the Year award. In 2003, John embarked on his own label, John Duval Wines, inspired by the best of the Barossa Valley's low-yielding, old vine vineyards. With a deft touch he crafts intense wines that are as complex and distinctive as the diverse terroir of his treasured Barossa Valley.