2023 MMAD Grenache

96 POINTS

Marcus Ellis - Halliday Wine Companion

Grown on Maslin sand, with the oldest grenache vines planted in '39. Floral and sultry, with intense red fruits, dark raspberry, macerated strawberry and pomegranate juice, cracked whole spices, coal dust. There are black cherry notes, too, with a certain darkness to the vivid and lively fruit profile, the old vines having their say, perhaps. That quality is repeated on the palate, with the silkiness those vines yield a feature of all the releases thus far, the tannins resolute and resolved, carrying the flavours long. There’s a clear thread emerging with the MMAD wines that tell a distinctive story of place, and it’s one that’s exciting to watch unfold.

96 POINTS

Jeni Port - Winepilot

There’s energy and then there’s the kind of exuberance that comes from the well-drained, ancient, sandy soils of Blewitt Springs that can take the energy levels in a wine up a notch or three. The MMAD crew direct that energy into one exciting Grenache. Eye-catching, bright purpley-grape hues. Super bright aromas, all black pepper and gentle florals, plum and cherry with a touch of maraschino cherry and musk. A cooler vintage has brought the black pepper out to play. It’s a striking aspect to the wine, nestling in naturally amongst the black, red fruits, earth, mineral and spices, providing that extra energetic rush via some lively acidity. This is a leading example of the type of quality and class of McLaren Vale Grenache now being celebrated, with elegance and texture threaded in fine tannins. The result is a wine that is both immediately engaging while also showing a developing complexity with the kind of seriousness that is compelling and attention worthy.

95 POINTS

Shanteh Wale - Winepilot

Bilberry, Acai and boysenberry.  A hint of Kirsch and lilac florals. Sandy tannins that spread like a fine gauze across the palate. This vintage shows a brooding side with a darker and deeper core of brown spice including cocoa and crushed black peppercorn. This is always a very tangible and textural wine experience with savoury notes underpinned by purple florals and black fruit. Stay with this wine a while and it will unfurl in its nuance and detail, drink it swifty and you’ll be equally chuffed. I think a flakey meat burek beside this wine would be a very handy lunch or dinner. Drink now or will cellar well for another 5-8 years.

92 POINTS

Erin Larkin - Robert Parker Wine Advocate

The 2023 Grenache hails from a single vineyard in Blewitt Springs in McLaren Vale, first planted in 1939. The wine is perfumed and light, with plenty of spice and chalky texture. The 2023 season was cool and wet, and the Grenache wines appear lighter in frame and density than 2022, and certainly 2021. They are three vastly different vintages. This is floral and piquant, layered with sour cherries and leaf. 14% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.

91 POINTS

Gary Walsh - The Wine Front

MMAD, MMAD, MMAD, MMAD to the bone. Not the easiest vintage in McLaren Vale, was 2023, though the wines have a certain spicy and peppery character that makes them interesting, albeit somewhat atypical. Raspberry, red cherry, a fair bit of white pepper and cinnamon (oak?) spice, a bit mulchy too, with something of poached strawberry top note. It’s juicy, again that strawberry in syrup flavour, a dusty and peppery grip to tannin, and it feels a bit warmer than its stated alcohol, with a somewhat washy and diffuse finish of solid length. Dusty and sweet to close. I’m not exactly MMAD about it, but it’s a decent wine all up.