Thistledown, The Quickening Shiraz, Eden & Ebenezer, Barossa South Australia, 2021

Producer Profile

Masters of Wine, Giles Cooke & Fergal Tynan, founded Thistledown Wines in 2010 after discovering iconic vineyard sites in the McLaren Vale, Barossa Valley and Adelaide Hills.

They make hand-made, small batch wines that perfectly illustrate the benefits of great sites and intelligent, minimalist winemaking.

Viticulture

Joel Mattschoss' Eden Valley vineyard provides the majority of the fruit. This spectacular vineyard is planted on some of the most difficult, meagre soils of any we have seen. Littered with boulders composed of ironstone and pink quartz, it is a truly challenging site. Vineyards are trellised, cordon trained and spur pruned.

Winemaking

This wine is all about great fruit, picked at the right time. Frequent vineyard walks determines exactly the right time, the fruit full of energy. Wild fermented, using some whole bunch inclusion play their role in ensuring that this wine is full of bright, fleshy fruit with great texture and spice. Aged in French oak for 6 to 8 months prior to bottling.

Oak Ageing

Time: 6 Months
Type: French
% wine oaked: 100
% new oak: None

Tasting Note

As life-forces stir, a connection is born and a personality created. The Quickening celebrates the vivifying power of nature. This is the Barossa reimagined. An exuberant outpouring of energy, captured within a sculptured framework that reflects the rugged yet beautiful landscape of its conception. A deliciously vibrant style of Barossa Shiraz with succulent raspberry and blackcurrant fruit, hints of spice and elegant, glossy texture.

Food Matching

Crispy aromatic duck, roast rib of beef.

Awards

James Halliday 93 Points
A deep ruby. Cracked pepper, cardamon and thyme. Plenty floral, too, once the glass is given a workout. The tannins, big -boned and finely articulated, serve to splay the spiced complexities across the refined latticework, from attack to long finish. A rich wine, but cagey, reticent and nicely standoffish in the mouth. Each glass reveals a different nuance as a result. 93 Points, NG(MW) September 2022.
Robert Parkers The Wine Advocate 95 Points
Now this is a treat. The cool 2021 season has really gifted the 2021 The Quickening Shiraz with detail, openness and poise, and the tannins emerge as being one of the true highlights. They are ultra fine and grippy, a little bit chewy, and serve to frame the fruit in such a way that they extend the line and length of the experience. I'm smiling as I type this, and I think that's a great sign that I like the wine very much. Delicious. 95 Points, EL, September 2022.
Robert Parkers The Wine Advocate 92 Points
I just reviewed 2021 The Quickening Shiraz in September 2022, and while I wouldn't normally re-review a wine in such a short time, I thought I'd have a look at it and see where the wine now sits. We are now 10 months on from that review, and the wine has really settled into itself. The gloss of youth has subsided, but the legacy of the 2021 vintage has not. While the wine is less "exciting" today, it remains excellent, and the tannins are a big highlight here. You can hang onto this with ease, but drinking now will offer pleasure too. 14.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap. 92 Points, EL, August 2023