WIRRA WIRRA RSW SHIRAZ 2022

Trophy for Best Shiraz Three Years and Older – McLaren Vale Wine Show 2025
Gold Medal – McLaren Vale Wine Show 2025
Gold Medal – New Zealand International Wine Show 2025

Winery notes (2022 Vintage)
"We named this wine after Robert Strangways Wigley, a noted South Australian eccentric and state cricketer who established Wirra Wirra back in 1894. Each vintage we take pride in producing a flagship shiraz that befits McLaren Vale’s reputation as a first class producer of this varietal and home to some of the oldest shiraz vines in the world.

Dark plum, mocha and nutmeg are layered with subtle hints of charcuterie, adding savoury complexity to the nose. Plush mulberry compote, sweet baking spices and dark chocolate unfold in luxurious layers, with fleshy fruits and spice seamlessly integrated for a harmonious expression.

Parcels from each vineyard were picked and fermented separately as small batches in two-tonne open fermenters to maintain the distinct vineyard character of each. Several ferments included a small whole bunch component. Each batch was tasted daily to determine the level of hand plunging and maceration required during fermentation. At the desired level of tannin and fruit extraction, each ferment was basket pressed with winemakers making the press cut at the first sign of tannin hardness. Pressed wines were each transferred to a tailored selection of French oak barriques and puncheons in which they completed malolactic fermentation. Following MLF and several times thereafter, individual wines were racked and returned. At the end of this program, select barrels from the most outstanding vineyard parcels were blended and filtered with a single pass before going to bottle. Approximately fifty percent of the final blend was aged in a combination of new to three year old French oak barriques with the remaining portion matured in a selection of four-six year old seasoned barrels."

96/100 Marcus Ellis, James Halliday's Wine Companion, August 2025 (2022 Vintage)
"A mild season, again, and an elegant RSW, though still bristling with dark berries and plum, with some blue fruit echoes. Black tea, dried violet, some dried olive, dark panforte and amaro, licorice powder, old leather and tar. There’s an appealing savouriness to this, and a weight that sits below the fuller side of things, the detail clearly rendered, the tannic architecture resolute but not strident. It’s a very good release."

96/100 Ray Jordan, WinePilot.com, November 2025 (2022 Vintage)
"The fruit for this outstanding Shiraz comes from four blocks, three of which are Wirra’s biodynamic Sandhill Vineyard. The fourth comes from Blewitt Springs, adding an important element from this great Shiraz sub-region. All blocks were treated separately, open fermented with some whole bunch use, and left for extended time on skins, contributing to the seamless integration of the wine. It shows a high degree of elegance within its stylish frame, with deeply concentrated red fruits, subtle peppery notes, and beautifully integrated tannins completing an impressive wine."

95/100 Angus Hughson, Vinous (2022 Vintage)
"The 2022 Shiraz RSW is a sturdy rendition of this label, packed tight with dense fruit and surprising structure. It offers tight, brooding and focused aromas of dark earth, blackberry, spice and dried herbs. That savoury theme continues thanks to a firm meaty core of flavour and robust gravelly tannins. The 2022 is impressive and built to last."

93+/100 Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front, December 2025 (2022 Vintage)
"There’s an elegance to this wine. It tastes of redcurrant, olives, dried herbs and leather, with whispers (but no more than that) of vanilla, bay leaves and milk chocolate. There’s a brine-like note here too, and excellent cohesion/integration, and finesse to both the tannin and too the finish itself. It’s a polished, well-measured wine. Quality-wise it’s not banging the door down but it is still very good."