Sure, the gob–stopping American oak–inflected bruisers are still in the mix and there will always be a market for them. But there has never been such a great diversity of styles and a greater understanding of fruit and vineyard sites and a more relentless pursuit of pure drinkability from a region that forged its reputation on the back of bruising red wines.

Fraser McKinley’s wines are at the pointy end of this new Barossa; it’s hard to trump them in the fruit purity stakes and every year they continue to show what a great vineyard, excellent farming and an intuitive, considered hand in the cellar can achieve. This is just a gorgeous wine.

The fruit comes from the renowned Hoffman vineyard in the Northern Barossa parish of Ebenezer. It’s long been the source of many famous wines and McKinley farms several small parcels from within its boundary. It’s a wine that displays great opulence and power but there is freshness and vitality to its line and a clarity to its fruit that is simply stunning.

Dark plummy fruits are lifted by notes of blueberry and redcurrant with hints of licorice, sandalwood, deep exotic spice and hints of violets and deftly judged sexy French oak tones. It sits comfortably in the medium–bodied territory and the tannins are ripe and filagreed; the acidity bright and perfectly poised.

Once again, McKinley, being the talented bugger that he is, has designed a beautiful label and the wine is named after his impossibly cute twin sons, Mahé and Ribo. A beautiful wine.

SAMI-ODI 2015 Mahé & Ribo Syrah

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