Plush, plummy fruit is accompanied by fistfuls of savory herbs and spices, purple beets, tobacco leaf and iodine in this rich red. The palate is tightly structured but balanced. Although silky in nature, the fruit is cinched in savory, talc-like tannins. Oodles of herbs and spices flow right to the finish.

Beautifully crafted, polished, seamless Barossa GSM. Bright and deep in colour and personality. Expansive, effortless character that comes from maturation in large oak foudre. All 3 varieties and oak unite in seamless coherence, guided by superfine tannins through a long finish. Impossible to corner as fruity, savoury, herbal, peppery, spicy, fleshy or dry, it's consummately all of the above.

It shows the all-round consistency of 2018 with bright red and blue berries, some red pastry notes and deeper, earthy, slightly tarry notes, too. The palate has a rich, supple and fleshy texture with ripe red-plum and raspberry fruit flavors, as well as soft, late-picked tannins.

Ripe, round and supple, Torbreck's 2018 The Steading is foudre aged, so the oak signature is minimal. Mixed cherries and berries abound, mixing in hints of caramel, plus more savory notes of dried herbs, espresso and black olives. Medium to full-bodied, it's soft and easy to drink, but it has enough concentration to drink well for several more years.