Robert Oatley McLaren Vale Pennant Shiraz 2018

96 POINTS

Ray Jordan - Winepilot

This is a supreme example of McLaren Vale Shiraz from an outstanding season. The fruit comes off very low yielding vines between 40 and 80 years old. Despite the power and intensity of the largely spicy blue fruit, the wine was aged for just 12 months in French oak of which only 20% was new. It’s smooth and succulent with rich fruit intensity displaying a very subtle leathery influence.

96 POINTS

Ken Gargett - Winepilot

The Pennant series represent the elite flagship wines from Larry Cherubino and the team at Robert Oatley. Expect these wines to not only reflect the best of the vintage and region, but to be exceptional drinking. This superb McLaren Vale Shiraz comes from grapes selected across the region with the La Colline Vineyard dominating. The fruit is all from vines which are forty to eighty years of age. The wine is fermented on skins for two to three weeks and then matures in French oak, 20% of which is new, prior to bending and bottling. Near opaque black in colour, the aromas that swirl around the glass include cassis, coffee beans, plush blueberry and blackberry notes and mocha, while the wine obviously enjoys some lovely oak integration. Great balance and length, supple and seamless. While the plushness is compelling, the wine also exhibits a sense of refinement. Very long and with satiny tannins to finish. A cracking Shiraz which will drink superbly over the next decade.

95 POINTS

Ned Goodwin - JamesSuckling.com

This is exceptional. Quintessentially regional shiraz that neither shirks nor flaunts its warm-climate origins. Sure, there is a lather of toasty, high-quality oak. But at this embryonic stage, it is to be expected. Behind this buttress lies plenty of Indian spice, blue and black fruit aspersions, licorice blackstrap and soaring violet notes tuned to high voltage, all the while compressed into a vortex of tension by quality tannins.

90 POINTS

Erin Larkin - Robert Parker Wine Advocate

The 2018 The Pennant McLaren Vale Shiraz is thick and full of flavor. The tannins are savory and shapely, and the wine has a feeling through the finish that is verging on drying. There are notes of salted licorice, mulberry and blueberry pie. 13.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.