THORN CLARKE SHOTFIRE SHIRAZ 2020

Thorn Clarke Shotfire Shiraz has big, ripe dark fruits with layers of spice, oak and savoury complexity all served up on a wonderfully rich and weighty palate with beautifully honed acidity keeping it all bright and fresh through the long finish. Fantastic!

Winery notes (2020 Vintage)
"When the Clarke forbears discovered gold in 1870 at the Lady Alice mine in the Barossa goldfields, so began a family dynasty intrigued by geology. A fine legacy that is reflected today in the terroir of our vineyards. The Shotfire range immortilises the Shotfirer’s hazardous job of setting and lighting the charges.

Inky red in colour with purple hues at the rim. Dense blackberry and plum fruits dominate the nose with five spice, smoke and dark chocolate showing through. A rich and generous palate showcases all the quintessential traits of Barossa Shiraz. Ripe black plum, black pepper and liquorice in abundance, supported by integrated and complex oak characters. The wine is plush and mouth filling, with long savoury tannins adding structure to the palate. Destined to be a long lived vintage that will reward cellaring but can also be enjoyed now for it’s vibrant fruit expression."

Reviews for previous vintages below…

5 Stars & 93/100 Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, September 2021 (2019 Vintage)
"This is beautifully styled and instantly appealing with Black Doris plum, blueberry, floral, vanilla and almond notes, leading to a wonderfully flavoursome palate that's succulent and silky. Well composed with plenty of tasty flavours. At its best: now to 2029."

Rated Excellent & 93/100 Cameron Douglas MS, January 2022 (2019 Vintage)
"Aromas and flavours of dark berries, black currant and dark plums with a toasty, brooding, fresh, youthful, sweet fruited, licorice and dark chocolate package. Sweet ripe flavours are contrasted by acidity and toasty barrel spices – clove, vanilla and cedar. Moderately firm tannins add structure and mouthfeel contributing to a lengthy finish. Delicious, frsh, youthful and read to enjoy from today and through 2030+."

4 Stars Cuisine Australian Shiraz Tasting, June 2021 (2018 Vintage)
"A big, blockbuster wine with punchy upfront flavours of myriad sweet fruit; plums, blackberry, and macerated wild berries. This has a heady, rich palate with massive, bold tannins and a plump, sweet finish. After a lighter, cooler-vintage expression in 2017, this is back to its old big bold self."

95/100 James Halliday's Australian Wine Companion (2017 Vintage)
"Good colour; an immaculately balanced and elegant medium-bodied shiraz, benefiting from the cool vintage that has blown freshness into so many wines. Blackberry and red cherry both in the ring."

93/100 Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front, May 2019 (2017 Vintage)
"Ever-reliable shiraz out of the Barossa. It’s as much red-berried as black and that’s not a bad thing. It feels well-settled and sure-footed, its creamy texture helping the flavours swing impressively through the palate. Coffee-cream, a trace of fragrant dry herbs, and just enough firm/chocolatey tannin to keep it all neat. Buy with confidence."