2021 High Sands Grenache
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Tasting notes
2021 was a lauded vintage in South Australia. It was long, mild and dry during the growing season and well set up with healthy yields due to favorable conditions during flowering in the spring of 2020. Here, the 2021 High Sands Grenache is just starting to emerge from its shell—the tannins that wrap around the fruit are layered with graphite and dusted licorice, dried rose petals and paprika dolce. The fruit is pure and speaks of soft black cherry and pomegranate. This is a wine that, in the context of this lineup, has only just emerged from "inchoate" and will, like the others, have an extraordinarily long life ahead of it. 14.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.
Critic scores
Average Score
James Suckling
Erin Larkin, Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
Often the best grenache at this stellar site and certainly the most robust, without any sense of excess of heaviness. Sandalwood, campfire and almost pithy red cherry and amaro liqueur notes. Some tamarind and sarsaparilla. Itâs not dissimilar to top nebbiolo, both flavor-wise and structurally. The finish is juicy but tightly wound, auguring for a long future in the cellar. Drinkable now, but best from 2029.
About the producer
One of the leading names in Australian wine, managed today by Peter Fraser, Yangarra farms its 90 hectares of vines biodynamically. The McLaren Vale estate works with Rhône varieties and is best known for its outstanding Grenache, the top botting of which is its High Sands cuvée.