Willunga 100 The Tithing McLaren Vale Grenache 2010

It’s so great to see Grenache on the up lately. Maybe that’s just my own perception, but still, things are looking more Grenache-y everyday.

This McLaren Vale Grenache is another goodun’. The flagship for Willunga 100, it comes off the old bush vines of the Yeenunga Vineyard at Seaview. Oak is mainly old, though with a little of new oak as part of the mix.

Ruby with just a hint of orange, the extra edge of bottle age has undoubtedly helped make this more complex, the redcurrant fruit receding a little but supplanted with charcoal and game meats. There’s a great Grenache tang here, and even though it’s just a bit warm and a little dried fruity around the edges, there is a real sense of ‘rightness’ (right spot, right vines, right wine) about it, with that cranberry and baked earth Vale Grenache seems unencumbered by oak or excess extract.

Good stuff.

Details: 14.5%, Screwcap, $40
Tasted: April 2015 (sample)
Best drinking: 2015-2027
Score: 18/20, 93/100
Would I buy it? I’d definitely choose this off a list.