Icons of Grenache Pack

South Australian Grenache may prove to be our most important red wine style over the coming years, and these are the producers who are leading the way.

This is a selection of the finest Grenache wines in Australia from six masters of the variety. Three wines from McLaren Vale, three from the Barossa - this is a benchmark set of wines perfect for any collector.

• 2017 Cirillo 1850 Ancestor Vine Grenache
• 2022 S.C. Pannell Smart Vineyard Grenache
• 2018 Vanguardist Rende Grenache
• 2022 Yangarra Ovitelli Grenache
• 2020 Head Ancestor Vine Grenache
• 2022 Aphelion Rapture Grenache

2017 Cirillo 1850 Ancestor Vine Grenache

This ancient Grenache block is one of the viticultural gems of Australia. Gnarled old bush vines planted in 1850, and arguably the oldest continuously producing Grenache vines in the world. The things they've seen from their low, sandy vantage point. It boggles the mind.

Marco Cirillo says he has learnt he could pick a little earlier, look for more freshness, and still keep the weight and power that comes from 160+ year-old vines.

It's a special wine, no doubt about it. A rarity in all the world to have a wine made from vines this old. A great year for this great site and Marco in career best form. It's a winning combination.

98 points
"The 2017 is beautifully textured and weighted, and despite quite serious underlying power, it remains light on its feet... It's a world beater with killer length and the best 1850 yet from Cirillo."
- Angus Hughson (Vinous)

96 points
"This is exceptional...Wonderful length. Compelling freshness. This will make fine old bones."
- Ned Goodwin MW (James Suckling)

96 points
"It is clear, pure, sensational. I love the tannins. It's sapid and palate staining but so light!"
- Erin Larkin (The Wine Advocate)

2022 S.C. Pannell Smart Vineyard Grenache

This is the much-anticipated follow-up to our 2023 DD Wine of the Year, and it's another absolute beauty!

The Smart Vineyard Grenache comes from the high-altitude Clarendon region of McLaren Vale and was established by the iconic McLaren Vale grape-growing figure Bernie Smart. The 67-year-old bush vines grow in 750 million-year-old soils of laminated dark and green siltstone at 230 meters above sea level, giving this wine remarkable depth, complexity and energy.

Stephen Pannell’s winemaking approach is all about showcasing the fruit. The grapes are hand-harvested and fermented with 20% whole bunches. The wine undergoes regular pump overs in stainless steel before being aged in old French oak vats and puncheons. This minimal intervention allows the wine to reflect its unique terroir.

It's full of cherries, rhubarb, and raspberry, with nutty aromas and hints of red licorice and caramelized sugar. The palate is strong and vibrant, with a tannic structure that’s bold yet refined.

It's a firmer and more structured beast in 2022, but yet another outstanding release of one of our favourite Australian wines. Get some while you can!

96 points
"From a wonderful old-vine site in Clarendon that stretches the possibilities of grenache. Wonderful stuff built for the cellar."
- Ned Goodwin (James Suckling)

2018 Vanguardist Rende Grenache

Single vineyard Grenache from Blewitt Springs in McLaren Vale from the outstanding 2018 vintage, that is at both cellarworthy and powerful, and delicate and weightless.

The 97 Point Wine Front review sums the wine up beautifully - it's an ethereal McLaren Vale Grenache, which is a sentence no-one could have written twenty years ago.

Very limited stock, as you can imagine.

97 Points
"First and foremost, it's a wine that's defined by its ultra-mineral quality and quartz-like tannin. In with that, you have ripe red berries, seductive potpourri perfume, peanuts, a little biscuit and baking spice, along with some sage and aniseed. It's medium-bodied, fresh, but firm and packed with stony/chalky tannin, ample fruit, though nothing sweet or overt. Finish is long, dry and firm, almost a Barolo-like quality to it (which is no bad thing, of course). It feels like a long-term wine, and should probably be left alone for a year or two, at least. I'd say it's a benchmark for Grenache."
- Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)

2022 Yangarra Ovitelli Grenache

96 points
"Red fruit, dried flowers (including chamomile), aniseed and mint, tamarind, almond meal and fresh rhubarb, cranberry flavour and acidity... Such a fine and distinctive wine."
- Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)

A Grenache of remarkable purity and energy here from the team at Yangarra, and simply put one of our favourite Australian wines.

To create the Ovitelli Grenache, a selection of the best fruit from the old Grenache vines that populate the 80-year-old Yangarra vineyard is carefully berry sorted, then sent to ceramic egg to ferment naturally and left to rest on skins for 170 days thereafter.

This is an ethereal Grenache, a nervy and tightly coiled rendition of the variety, which speaks eloquently and beautifully of its home.

It's a truly wonderful example of McLaren Vale Grenache, which is stunning now but will also evolve gracefully with time in bottle.

2020 Head Ancestor Vine Grenache

In this Ancestor Vine Grenache, you can see Alex Head's winemaking passion and philosophy distilled into a single bottle.

From an ancient vineyard in Springton in the Eden Valley, these warhorse vines planted in 1858 yield fruit of dazzling concentration and complexity. In the hands of Alex, the fruit sings.

The attention to detail here is the thing that sets it apart. The fruit is delicately handled every step of the way. From hand picking to manual plunging and pigeage (foot stomping) twice a day, every effort is made to extract the maximum potency of flavour from these grapes. The aim here is clear, Alex says, "Made with complete respect to the fruit and aiming above the great CNDP (Châteauneuf-du-Pape) in terms of quality and longevity." He's aiming high and he is nailing it.

Make no mistake, this wine is a leading light in the Australian Grenache revolution. An ambitious project that has come to fruition. This is a wine not to be missed.

96 points
"Just beautiful drinking: a wine that is very composed and comfortable in its own skin. Savoury and fine."
- Dave Brookes (Halliday Wine Companion)

96 points
"The silken texture is a highlight. A delicious grenache."
- Huon Hooke (The Real Review)

95 points
"Fine-grained silky tannin, and a long fresh finish, maybe a little blood orange in the aftertaste, It’s very stylish and composed. Excellent."
- Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)

2022 Aphelion Rapture Grenache

This is an elite example of McLaren Vale Grenache from Rob Mack and the Aphelion team.

It's only released in years when the quality of fruit is just right, to craft the best of the best in their fleet of delicious Grenache offerings.

This is a wine that will develop well with some time in a quiet, dark place. This is the apex predator in the Aphelion range.

Only 40 dozen made... get in quick.

95 Points
"Cherry, raspberry, Earl Grey tea, fresh herbs, spicy biscuits. It’s a bit more squishy in the red fruit department than some of the other wines from 2022, kind of poached strawberry and spice, fresh mint, dusty and gently grainy tannin grip, orange zest topped friand, a fair bit of mouth-perfume, and a succulent yet quietly ferrous finish of excellent length. In terms of overall balance, maybe the best of the 2022 releases, though maybe less individual in personality? Still, it’s really impressive and very good."
- Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)