This wine is floral, exuberant, with lengthy smooth tannins, and metallic notes.
This cuvée takes its name from a small parcel of the Adrianna Vineyard that is completely covered with oval white stones and was the site of an ancient riverbed. The abundant stones provide optimal drainage and extreme temperatures. They absorb heat and moderate the nights, but also function like ice cubes after a very cold night. Stony soil Malbecs tend to be extremely aromatic, rich and luxurious, just like the River Malbec from Adrianna. This wine can be enjoyed young or aged for decades.
Pair with grilled meats.
Review:
There is an usual stony austerity in the 2021 Adrianna Vineyard River, cropped from a cold year when the full clusters fermented in concrete with a slightly shorter maceration and an élevage in a 2,000-liter oak foudre and the rest in stainless steel. It has a moderate 13.4% alcohol with very high acidity (8.2!) and a low pH (3.37), incredible parameters of freshness. The wine was closed and took time to take off in the glass, revealing a very elegant and subtle personality, with the silky texture of the very fine tannins, pristine aromas and flavors and a sense of harmony that was moving. It's powerful but extremely elegant in that rare combination of clout and energy, a wine of light, aerial, with some ethereal qualities, delicate and refined. This combines the cool place and high altitude, the cool year and the stony soils, to deliver a stunning Malbec that goes well beyond the variety. Bravo!
-Wine Advocate 100 Points
The Barossa has a core of traditional growers of German Silesian descent, dating back five generations, staunchly continuing on the traditions of their forebears. Occasionally one or two parcels of fruit of overwhelming quality come over the weighbridge; this is such an example. This wine is sourced from up to 70-year-old, low-yielding shiraz vines from a selection of historical grower vineyards at Tappa Pass and Light Pass, growing in low-fertility Neoproterozoic soils more than 542 million years old, that range from red-brown earths to terra rossa. These vineyards provide shiraz fruit from both the Eden and Barossa Valleys of the Barossa zone, vinified in traditional open-top fermenters. Matured in 24% new and 76% seasoned French hogsheads for 18 months prior to blending and bottling.
Deep crimson with violet hues. Vibrant aromas of blueberry, blackberry, Satsuma plum and raspberry with hints of anise, crushed marjoram, cardamom, violets and cedar. The palate is rich, plush, and complex, with juicy blueberry and mulberry, spicy blackberry paste, and layers of fine velvety tannins creating incredible depth and length.
Review:
This was an excellent vintage in the Barossa and this exceptional wine from 70-year-old low yielding vines is a beautiful expression of the season. Dark plummy dark chocolate characters with a dry dusty complexity. The palate is sublimely integrated and balanced, exhibiting poise and style. The sweet fruit on the middle palate is complemented by the minerally oyster shell edge. Terrific wine.
-Wine Pilot 96 Points