2019 Mount Langi Ghiran - "A spectacular shiraz"

+44 (0)1732 463 527

View this email in your browser

Mount Langi Ghiran
Grampians - Victoria, Australia

In the mid-nineties, when I first tasted the wines of Mount Langi Ghiran, they were pioneers of the cool climate style of Australian Shiraz. They continue to rank among the finest wineries in Australia and are rated as 'Excellent' in the prestigious Langtons classification. Production is very small indeed and with hardly any leaving Australia, I'm rarely able to offer any. These are world-class Shiraz of profound elegance.

ETA January 2023

2019 Langi Shiraz

£440.00 per 6 in bond
only 5 cases available

Very deep, concentrated red/purple colour, youthful and bright. The bouquet is powerful and high-impact, it bounces out of the glass, with pepper-spice and graphite, ironstone and blackberry aromas, while the flavour is intense and focused, concentrated and long, with power but not heaviness. The tannins are fine and coat the mouth, the richness of flavour ensuring it lingers long after the wine has gone. A spectacular shiraz. 2022-2044
97 points Huon Hooke, The Real Review

Hand-picked fruit, 90/10% whole berries/bunches into small open-top fermenters with natural yeasts. Pressed to tank, transferred to French oak barriques (60% new) for mlf and 18 months' maturation. The Swiss clone, planted in 1969 and still on its own roots, is at the heart of this impressive flagship shiraz. It has a deep vein of ripeness of dark plum, aniseed, sage, lifted wood spices and blackberries. Taut across the palate in structure but velvety in flavour, it raises the question of when to drink. The answer: not just now, if possible. Now-2034
96 points Jeni Port, Halliday Wine Companion

Bright purple. An intensely perfumed bouquet evokes dark berry preserves, incense, potpourri and exotic spices, and a smoky mineral nuance builds in the glass. Juicy, youthfully chewy and alluringly sweet, offering concentrated blueberry, cherry cola, vanilla and violet pastille flavors and a strong suggestion of allspice. Deep and palate-staining but vibrant as well, with harmonious tannins adding shape and grip to the impressively long finish. 60% new French oak. 2028-2039
96 points Josh Raynolds, Vinous

2019 The Mast Shiraz

£220.00 per 6 in bond
only 5 cases available

Deep and very bright red/purple colour, youthful and fresh, which also describes the whole wine. It has a spicy aroma with some pepper and balsamic herb high notes, while the palate is intense and medium to full-bodied, the fine-grained tannins lingering throughout. It's imbued with lovely freshness, which seems unrelated to acidity. Quietly powerful: a quite stunning shiraz. 2021-2041
96 points Huon Hooke, The Real Review

90% hand-picked fruit, the remainder machined harvested. Small open-top fermenters with natural yeasts, 50/50% whole berries/bunches. Pressed to tank, transferred to oak for mlf and 18 months' maturation in French barriques (25% new). A vinous ode to the late, great innovative winemaker Trevor Mast, who promoted the kind of cool-climate shiraz we now so enjoy. This is all about the quality of the fruit, the light pepper and swirling spice, anise, wild raspberries, cassis. It moves with precision on the palate, elegant and supple. Now-2038
96 points Jeni Port, Halliday Wine Companion

Such alluring, fragrant complexity is the first thing here, with plenty of fresh fruit in the red and dark-berry zone, as well as lots of floral and spice notes. The palate has a supple, smooth-honed and velvety feel with a level of fluidity that belies its power, such is the balance here. A fitting tribute to the winery’s founder, the late Trevor Mast. Drink over the next decade.
96 points Nick Stock, jamessuckling.com

2018 Talus Shiraz

£145.00 per 6 in bond
only 3 cases available

Deep ruby colour with some purple hints in the rim. Raspberries just crushed with hints of white pepper and broken dark slate on the nose. A medium-bodied shiraz that flows with drive yet elegance. Plush and bright fruits are layered with graphite minerality that is accentuated by a sandy tannic line and a fine high tone of acidity. Hard to put down and will unfurl into further complexity in time. 2021-2036
95 points Huon Hooke, The Real Review

A blend of some of the best parcels from the Mount Langi Ghiran property, 80% hand-picked, open-fermented with 75% whole berries/25% whole bunches, matured for 18 months in French barriques (25% new), 600 dozen made. If you didn't know otherwise, you might think red fruits have joined the black, or viognier or raspberries (wild or cultivated). Now-2038
96 points Jeni Port, Halliday Wine Companion

Saturated ruby. A powerfully scented bouquet evokes candied black and blue fruits, incense and baking spices, along with a vanilla nuance in the background. Sweet and expansive in the mouth, offering sappy cherry cola, mulberry, violet pastille and spicecake flavors that smoothly meld depth and energy. Fine-grained, even tannins make a late appearance on the impressively long finish, which leaves vibrant blue fruit and vanilla notes behind. 2024-2034
94 points Josh Raynolds, Vinous

Originally planted in 1870, the Mount Langi Ghiran vineyard was replanted by Italian immigrants, the Fratin Brothers, in 1963 after they were captivated by the sentimental notion that it reminded them of home. They planted vines, nut trees and fig trees to create their little piece of Veneto here in Australia. Unable to find any Italian wine varieties they instead planted the local shiraz vine. In doing so, they created the source of the now iconic Langi Shiraz. The exceptionally high quality of the Fratin's fruit quickly drew a strong following and in 1981 the brothers appointed Trevor Mast as consultant winemaker. Six years later, Trevor purchased the vineyard. A turning point for Mount Langi Ghiran, Trevor had a vision for a cool-climate shiraz, before cool-climate was in vogue, and so the Langi Shiraz was just around the corner. Located in the Grampians region of Victoria, two hours west from Melbourne, the Mount Langi Ghiran vineyard is one of the most isolated and unique sites in Australian viticulture. The winemaking team there is very fortunate to have great grapes to turn into wines. The shiraz planted at Langi forms some of the oldest and purest shiraz clonal material anywhere in the world. This rare fruit perfectly matched with the cool climate of the Grampians and the ancient granitic soil of the vineyard, produces spicy pepper characteristics for which Langi has become renowned. Today, Adam Louder, Chief Winemaker, continues the Langi vision. Born and bred in the Grampians, Adam's career first began at Langi as a cellar hand under Trevor Mast in 1998. In 2016, Adam returned to Langi with rich experience from celebrated wine regions around the globe. "Having travelled to some of the most spectacular wine regions around the world, it’s hard to deny just how unique Langi actually is. My approach to winemaking is simple, get it right in the vineyard, then nurse the wines through from start to finish, listening to what the wines and vines need, and respecting what you get given each season."

- James Halliday's Wine Companion