*Available on Indent

Thistledown The Vagabond Grenache 2023 

Classified as a Real Review 'merit' wine, sourced from 3 blocks of old, dry grown bush vines in Blewitt Springs, this features an aromatic nose of violets and cherry, with a polished, multi-layered palate and long finish.

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Tasting Notes

Thistledown The Vagabond Grenache 2023 

 Review

Thistledown The Vagabond Grenache 2023 
"From four Blewitt Springs sites, all old, dry-grown bush vine. One parcel was fermented in a concrete pyramid with crushed fruit and whole bunches, the rest open fermented with 35% whole bunches; maturation mainly in old puncheons. 2023 has delivered grenache of beguiling perfume. In the best examples there's also depth, spice and the structural architecture to age. Such is the case here. Dusky dark rose, cherry, wild raspberry, ground cinnamon, rosehip and bergamot tea with a ferrous substratum. The tannins across the ’23 grenache bottlings at this address are excellent, assertive in a finely sandy and gently pithy way." 95 Points, Marcus Ellis, Halliday Wine Companion

"From four old vine, bush vine vineyards in Blewitt Springs. I’m all for single vineyard wines, though sometimes the sum of the parts makes for a more complete wine. Raspberry, red cherry, violet perfume, some dried herb and spice. It’s medium-bodied, crisp and quite frisky, all red fruits with with some blood orange and pomegranate, almonds too, tannin is all sort of crushed sandstone (or something like that), and the finish is aromatic, long and really quite pretty. Such energy. Lovely." 95 Points, Gary Walsh, The Wine Front

"The 2023 The Vagabond Old Vine Grenache is succulent and silky and leads with a bouquet as polished and supple as the palate—raspberry pip, cranberry, red cherry, licorice, star anise and layers of Earl Grey tea and violets. It has beautiful clarity and poise, but this is what we have come to expect from this producer. Classy wine." 94 Points, Erin Larkin, Robert Parker Wine Advocate

"Deep ruby and purple colours in the glass. Mulberry, wood oil and cardamom aromatics. Dark berry fruits fill the core of the palate. It's medium to full in weight yet with a lift of acid ensuring it never sits heavy. Savoury spices and dark slate minerality all add to the complexity and character here with firm grained tannins ensuring length and precision to its flow, with the finish lingering very long." 94 Points, Stuart Knox, The Real Review

"Beautifully fragrant, mid-weighted grenache. Red-fruit allusions, pomegranate, menthol, dried rose petal and orange zest. 2023 was another cooler attenuated vintage, the last and perhaps the most challenging of a La Nina troika. Elegance writ large here, somehow synergistic with a Mediterranean-accented cru Beaujolais, such is the imminence, freshness, gritty tannin and shimmering transparency." 93 Points, Ned Goodwin MW, JamesSuckling.com

Thistledown is the vision of Master of Wine, Giles Cooke. Choosing to focus on the Grenache grape shows the belief he has in the variety. A certified member of Sustainable Winegrowing Australia, they have secured numerous rare old vines and unique vineyards for the future. Working with growers across McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley and Riverland, they craft elegant, fine, aromatic reds, many destined to showcase Grenache's charm as a single variety. Thistledown wines are made in small quantities in the Adelaide Hills.

Producer website: https://www.thistledownwines.com/

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