HickinBotham Brooks Road 2017 Shiraz Wine 750ml

Winemaker Notes

Vegan

2017 was a cooler year in McLaren Vale. The carryover from the 2016 rains into a perfect spring and then a cooler ripening season led to good fruit character for Shiraz and Grenache expressing in an elegant and lively style. The 2017 Shiraz has an elegant and balanced form, with round blackberry and black pepper notes on a lithe and supple frame.

Critical Acclaim

WE 95 Wine Enthusiast
Thanks in part to the relatively cool year, this is a wine that manages refinement, restraint and beautiful expression of place. The nose is a neatly woven basket of aromas: crushed flowers, red and blue fruit, pepper, mint and cigar box. The palate is full figured and highly textural. There’s a line of powdery, spicy, ultrafine tannins and a streak of high-end oak. Set up for a long and beautiful life, Drink from 2022–2045

JS 93 James Suckling
Dark plums and spice with toasty oak on offer, leading to a plush, fluid and rich texture, as well as a very fleshy and fresh, compact feel at the finish. Dark berries and cherries and a sleek, assertive tannin edge complete the picture. Drink or hold.

WS 93 Wine Spectator
Offers polished notes of toffee, baking spices, tobacco and cedar, featuring a core of plush, plump plum, kirsch and blackberry flavors that are succulent, juicy and polished. Shows seamless integration on the finish, with a chorus of flavors and velvety tannins. Drink now through 2035.

RP 91 Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
The product of a cool vintage, Hickinbotham’s 2017 Brooks Road Shiraz is a tart, intense offering. Scents of mixed berries and pastry crust mark the nose, while the medium to full-bodied palate is tight and taut, juicy but a bit ungenerous. The finish suggests more potential, offering mouthwatering acidity and fine-grained tannins. I’d suggest holding this for at least another year, giving it time to relax a bit and reach its potential.