Raw Power Shiraz 2022 – the $14 steal

What a great story. In 2022, an Adelaide Plains grape contract fell through when a big company pulled the pin at the last moment. In steps, ex-punk hero Rawley Power, working with Dom Torzi (who also uses Plains fruit for his overperforming Old Plains label with Tim Freeland), and they’ve turned the grapes into this Raw Power Shiraz 2022.

Dom calls this simply packaged wine an ‘inflation killer,’ and hot dog, it’s the sort of $13.99 bargain that this week of value wines is all about. It’s an obvious Shiraz, thick with coconut and licorice oak that hits you like a wall. Every part of it feels a bit sweet and overt, from the dominant heavy toast barrel character onwards, even though you wouldn’t say the fruit underneath is powerful (or raw). What it does have, though, is a whole lot of heart in a chocolatey, gluggy, and proudly lavish mode.

Ultimately, you just won’t find a more mouthfilling red for $168 a dozen (plus $15 postage).

THE VERDICT

• Best drinking: now and for plenty of years yet
• Score (out of 20): 17
• Score (out of 100): 90
• Alcohol %: 14.2
• RRP (in $AUD): 14
• Winery website: https://www.rawpowerwine.com.au/
• Would I buy it?: not personally, but I'd recommend in a heartbeat