The Garden Route

Two Hands

Bella's Garden Barossa Valley Shiraz 2014

Ming L
9.3

When last tasted about 3 years ago, the palate left much to be desired. This is finally coming together.
The nose shows beautifully with blackberries, prune, black tea leaf, cured meat, black pepper, and cocoa powder. Medium to full, the palate is lush, silky, and powerful. Fresh round acidity and fine grained tannins. Long candied herbal finish.
This will continued to evolve and provide drinking pleasure for the next 10-15 years.
— 20 days ago

Ira, Tom and 1 other liked this

Hewitson

Old Garden Vineyard Mourvedre 2020

Wow. Amazing. Focused, concentrated, flawless. Seamless layers of fresh dark red fruit infused with subtle spice and carried by fully integrated fine, smooth tannins. All in complete harmony. Made from small berries grown by 150 year old vines planted by the first settlers from Prussia, Central Europe. Is this the oldest Mourvèdre vineyard in the world? Stayed tuned to hear and see the story in a few months. Subscribe on spokenwines.com and YouTube @Spoken-Wines to get a front seat 😊. — 10 months ago

Tammy de Weerd
with Tammy
Jan, Ted and 5 others liked this

Cowhorn Vineyard and Garden

20 Applegate Valley Syrah 2012

Andrew Holod
9.3

My wife commented that this had too much color and heft, given its age.
Deep, vibrant purple. Intense plummy fruit bouyed w warm toasted aromas that conjure vanilla, cumin, toasted oak. Dense, fleshy, long, with resolved tannins that still offer plenty of structure and elegant acidity. Among the best domestic, 'natural' wines I've had.
— 3 years ago

Eric, Bob and 2 others liked this

Williams Selyem

Luella's Garden Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir 2021

Blackberry, licorice , raspberry jam, touch of tobacco. — 3 months ago

Veronika liked this

Two Hands

Lily's Garden McLaren Vale Shiraz 2017

Super spicy. Edgy dry fruit with notes of tar and cigar, yet a nice balanced finish. Definitely not the typical full bodied, lucious Shiraz you’d expect from South Australia. — 5 months ago

Tammy de Weerd
with Tammy
Jan, Ted and 5 others liked this

Spice Route

Swartland Pinotage 2018

Oak, chocolate and vanilla. And some fruity sweetness. — 2 years ago

RouteStock Cellars

Route 116 Pinot Noir

Interesting that there was a Sonoma bottle AND a Willamette Valley bottle. I tried the Sonoma one and loved it. Hubby said "too juicy," but I thought it was a great summer red. — 4 years ago

Henschke

Johann's Garden Barossa Valley Red Blend 2022

Another excellent red in the Henschke range. Brief notes: A GMS blend from the Barossa Valley. Rich and flavoursome (14.5% ABV). Red and blue fruits - medium plus bodied - plush. Stephen Henschke often said on the weekend what great vintages 2022 and 2023 were. Added to the fabulous 2021, that’s 3 great vintages in a row. — 6 months ago

Shay, Daniel and 18 others liked this

Spice Route

Chakalaka Red Blend 2016

Deep purple in color with a short reddish rim.

Pretty nose with cedar, vanilla, wild flowers, chocolates, coffee and black pepper.

Dry on the palate with nice complexity.

Showing black fruits with cedar, earth, herbs, black pepper, light vanilla, spices, dark chocolates and tobacco leaf.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and cherries.

This is a tasty red blend from South Africa. Soft and smooth with nice complexity. Nicely balanced with a soft mouthfeel.

Needed 4 hours to open up properly, so be patient.

A blend of 36% Mourvedre, 22% Shiraz, 13% Carignan, 11% Grenache, 9% tannant and 9% Petite Sirah.

14% alcohol by volume.

91 points.
— 9 months ago

Tom, Philip and 5 others liked this

K Vintners

Rock Garden Syrah 2014

Soft fruit, some bacon, smoked meat, & herbs. Not very complex. Lovely BBQ wine. Unlike many WA syrah, not an alcoholic fruit bomb. However, terrible QPR for the level of vinous complexity on offer. — 2 years ago

Alsu Shakirova
with Alsu
Vanessa, Ira and 9 others liked this