Technical Tasting Notes

2022 BAROSSA VALLEY SAM’S GRENACHE

GROWING SEASON
The 2022 Barossa Valley vintage will be remembered as the second almost faultless season in a row after an equally impressive although different 2021 vintage. Both Vintages were cool, the coolest since 2002. Good spring rains meant that we entered the growing season with good soil moisture levels. A warm dry growing season followed, with balanced and healthy canopies producing an average crop of extremely high quality fruit. A pigeon pair, perhaps the best two since 1990/1991 if not longer. The good news is that flavours and colours (in reds) and the vibrancy and lift in the whites are incredible. Overall quality is exceptional. Another extremely good Barossa vintage in the making

TASTING NOTE
The 2022 Barossa Valley Sam’s Grenache is a blend of old vine Grenache Blocks from Koonunga and Ebenezer vineyards located in the Northern Barossa and from the Southern Barossa district of Williamstow. These vineyards produced outstanding fruit in 2022, and together produced a wonderful blend. Red fruits, medium to full bodied with inherent power to produce a beautifully balanced Grenache.

A classic Barossa Grenache, from an exceptional year, this wine carries the hallmarks of outstanding old vine fruit. This wine is bright, with lifted florals, red fruits, with a medium to full bodied pallet supported by fine tannins. A standout wine in the cooler than typical 22 vintage. Drink now and enjoy the freshness or cellar for a few years.

SPECIFICATIONS

Region: Barossa Valley
Sub Region: Koonunga, Ebenezer, Williamstown
Variety: Grenache
Alcohol: 14.5%
Cellaring: 5 years+
Winemaker: Andrew Seppelt

Download Technical Tasting Notes 2023 Vintage ➝

Download Technical Tasting Notes 2022 Vintage ➝

Download Technical Tasting Notes 2021 Vintage ➝

Download Technical Tasting Notes 2020 Vintage ➝

Download Technical Tasting Notes 2019 Vintage ➝

Download Technical Tasting Notes 2018 Vintage ➝

Reviews

2022 Barossa Valley Sam’s Grenache

Huon Hooke (therealreview.com)

95 Points - Deep red-purple, a serious colour for a pure grenache; dried herb and fresh turned earth aromas, a lick of cedary oak, succulent fruit, the palate intense, nicely concentrated and powerful. A deeply flavoured and well structured grenache with ample tannins which are supple, ripe and balanced, adding serious structure and length to this great-value wine. This has some wow factor.. 14/1/2024

2025 Wine Companion (Dave Brookes)

93 Points - A blend of grenache parcels from across the Barossa Valley, from Williamstown in the south to Ebenezer and Koonunga in the north. This is a tremendous little grenache for the price. Flush with ripe plum and red fruits, spice, cola hints, dried citrus rind, blossom and earth. Those silty tannins show some grunt behind the fruit, and I'm pretty confident that this is up there with the best of the variety for the price.

2021 Barossa Valley Sam’s Grenache

Vintage Journal (Andrew Caillard)

95 Points - Medium crimson. Intense dark plum, blackberry, graphite aromas with herb garden aniseed notes. Velvety textured, smooth and richly flavoured, with abundant dark berry fruits and attractive chocolaty/ mocha notes. Finishes chocolaty with aniseed/ liquorice complexity.

Now–2030

Steve Leszczynski (Qwinereviews.com)

94 Points - Juicy raspberries. Raspberry city is perhaps a more apt description. Delicious and then some. A fabulous Barossa Grenache at a great price.

A blend of old vine Grenache from three Barossa sub-regions, the Sam's Grenache is always a reliable wine to check in with. It oozes great fruit with soft and fine spices woven throughout. Moving with absolute ease, it provides cheekiness yet is brimming with pleasure. Petals ensure some prettiness and dark chocolate-dipped raspberries add class with a lovable length that reaches out for an embrace on an engaging finish. Classy stuff.

Drink to five years+

NED GOODwin (jamessuckling.com)

92 Points - A meld of premium sourcing across the Valley. This is very good, with no surfeit of persuasive tannins to corral and compress the fruit sweetness of the region. Blood plum, raspberry liqueur and negroni-drenched orange slice. Tamarind and clove confer further intrigue. I'd love just a bit more grit, savoriness and tension. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

2023 James Halliday Wine Companion (Dave Brookes)

93 Points - A blend of old-vine grenache from Koonunga and Ebenezer vineyards located in the northern Barossa. Bright red purple in the glass with a tight aromatic profile showing increased levels of ginger spice and fruits at the redder end of the spectrum. The balance is bang on; fruit weight, acidity, fine, ripe tannin all working together and there is a graceful, savoury shape to the fruit as it slides across the palate. Lovely stuff and great value.

2020 Barossa Valley Sam’s Grenache

Not Released nor Reviewed

2019 Barossa Valley Sam’s Grenache

2021 Wine Companion (James Halliday)

94 Points - Bright, clear crimson; positively ripples with muscular power that is inherent in the wine, not the result of extraction, and has nothing to do with fruit left on the vine too long. Choose the moment or leave it in the cellar. 165 dozen made.

Steve Leszczynski (www.qwinereviews.com)

95 Points - There are some seriously smashing Grenache wines out there at the moment. Perhaps they're in a purple patch? If you love the variety as much as I do, jump in the queue for this gear from Hayes Family Wines.

Named after the owner's son, one would hope Sam gets a cut of the profits, perhaps a first class education or even a new cricket bat - or maybe all the above?

The fruit is sourced from a 100 year old Koonunga vineyard which is dry grown. Juicy and vibrant, it bounds along on its toes. Bright red fruits sail through the mouth with delicate spices hugging every crevice of the mouth. Pretty aromas of violets and delicate tannins peel off more interest. Such a dancy number, it's the type of wine that disappears in no time. So delicious. So moreish. All praise Grenache.

Drink now to five years.

2018 Barossa Valley Sam’s Grenache

2020 Wine Companion (James Halliday)

95 Points - From old estate vines in Ebenezer and Koonunga. While full of red berry/cherry/pomegranate fruit, it retains elegance and shape thanks to its moderate alcohol - and hence ripeness. Old vines also helped. No confection flavours.

Drink by: 2025

Huon Hooke (Huonhooke.com)

89 Points - Deepish red/purple colour, with a subdued but attractive nose of jubey red fruits and subtle spices. The wine is soft and fruity, straightforward and bright but not that complex, with a little juiciness and alcohol warmth. It's light to medium-bodied and sweetly juicy. 19/2/2019

Drink 2019 to 2029

QWine (www.qwinereviews.com)

89 Points - A blend of two vineyards from the northern Barossa. A little more time in the glass reveals its true personality.

Some good fruit characteristics are shown but the back palate drops off quicker than expected.

Raspberries and strawberries headline the red fruits aided by scents of purple flowers. A faint bacon-like aroma puts out its hand late but after a couple of days of tasting it's gone. Milk chocolatey feels in the mouth with mulberries coming into contention. It's silky with delicious spices to close. It will grow on you.

Drink now to five years. 18/02/2019

2017 Winemaker's Selection Grenache

Huon Hooke (huonhooke.com)

89 Points - Bright, light to medium purple colour, the aroma sweetly cherry, plummy and fragrant. It’s sweet and slightly mawkish in the mouth, a little on the syrupy side, with seemingly high alcohol and certainly high ripeness - without loss of freshness, though. The texture is soft and sleek, slurpable and gentle, finishing with some alcohol warmth. 12/10/2017

Drink 2017 to 2027

2019 Wine Companion (Campbell Mattinson)

92 Points - From old vines in the northern Barossa, hand-picked and sorted, destemmed, fermented in a single 685l ceramic egg before spending 90 days on skins, matured for a further 6 months in the egg, 75 dozen made. Light, clear crimson-magenta; fresh and lively, with twin cords of juicy red fruits and savoury/earthy fine-grained tannins. I think it's at its best now or soonish, although its balance will keep it in good stead for some years yet.

Drink by: 2021

QWine (www.qwinereviews.com)

93 Points - Hot off the press comes this 2017 release. Owner Brett Hayes' wife only drinks Pinot. Grenache is cheekily known as Barossa Pinot and winemaker Andrew Seppelt has smashed the brief to get the boss's wife drinking the stuff. If you don't rip into a few glasses of this, something just ain't right.

Handpicked and hand sorted, destemmed and wild yeast fermented in a 685L ceramic egg before spending 90 days on skins. Skins removed, saw another 6 weeks on in the egg maturing before bottling. Super attractive Grenache. I reckon I could dive into that egg with pike. Scents of dried red flowers, violets, baking type spices - pretty evocative aromas really. Bright red fruit leads the way. A sheet of savoury feels and spice is draped across the mouth. Soft and fine, this sits long and devilishly moreish.
Drink now to five years. 12/10/2017
 

2016 Barossa Valley Grenache

QWine (www.qwinereviews.com)

93 Points - And thank you very much... What a delicious Grenache! I could be absolutely selfish and drink the whole lot myself. And I may just do that - self-control can be a tough thing when wines like this come through the door which are so delicious and approachable.

Owner Brett Hayes personally dropped off a few samples recently. We chewed the fat on a range of topics too. It seems like things have barely got moving in his new full-time venture here - watch this space. The fruit for this Grenache comes from a biodynamic vineyard in Greenock. 100% bush vine, 16 days on skins before 10 months in old French oak. The simple tasting note looks like this: berry fruits, some fruit sweetness, a touch of spice and medium bodied with the delish factor cranked up to 15.

Delve deeper and there's plenty of intrigue despite its sheer pleasure. Red flowers, juicy berry basket and raspberries - it's youthful exuberance is captivating. The more I swirl the glass aromas of violets and hint of orange peel reveal themselves. Super soft tannins roll through the mouth almost care-free. Those ripe berry fruits keep knocking on the door but not to be confused with jubey and jammy Grenache seen from time to time. So moreish and delicious.

A terrific wine and super buying. Drink now to eight years. 7/7/2017