Juveniles is a 'cult' Parisian wine bar run by eningmatic ex-pat Englishman, Tim Johnston. He's been in Paris more than twenty years & is a passionate promoter of the Rhone Valley & it's wines, particularly individualist, quality minded producers. Dave Powell hit it off with Tim over the years, eventually making a wine exclusively for his wine bar in 1999. In keeping with Tim & Dave's love of Rhone Valley varietals & the fact that they are equally at home in the Barossa, the blend constitutes old-vine Grenache, Mataro (Mourvedre) & Shiraz & was elevaged entirely in stainless steel. Fermented in single vineyard batches, assembled in tank & allowed to complete a natural malo-lactic fermentation before being bottled without filtration or fining in December 2010. Bold & seductive, this youthful, unoaked blend encapsulates all that is great in natural, pure, unseasoned wine. Bold & seductive, this youthful, unoaked blend encapsulates all that is great in natural, pure, unseasoned wine. Its fragrance, intensity & energy are all reminiscent of freshly fermenting must, with ripe juicy flavours of blackberry, spiced cherries, minerals & Asian spices wrapped around a skeleton of fresh acidity & fine mineral laden tannins. Soft & sensuous, this wine is frightfully drinkable already, but as with its predecessors will greatly recompense those who choose to give it a few years in the cellar. ...

Inspired by the rich, luscious & mineral scented dry whites of the Rhone Valley the 2010 Steading Blanc is sourced entirely from our Descendant Vineyard on Roennfeldt Road. Fragrant aromas of acacia flowers, roasted nuts & buttered citrus are neatly balanced with underlying hints of bees wax, minerals, & chalk. The ripe, fleshy barrel fermented Marsanne gives the palate extraordinary richness whilst the Roussanne contributes its more flinty & austere personality. The result is a seamless wine with a silken texture that can be enjoyed with anything from the sea, particularly with a rich crustacean based sauce. ...

Inspired by the rich, luscious & mineral scented dry whites of the Rhone Valley the 2010 Steading Blanc is sourced entirely from our Descendant Vineyard on Roennfeldt Road. Fragrant aromas of acacia flowers, roasted nuts & buttered citrus are neatly balanced with underlying hints of bees wax, minerals, & chalk. The ripe, fleshy barrel fermented Marsanne gives the palate extraordinary richness whilst the Roussanne contributes it's more flinty & austere personality. The result is a seamless wine with a silken texture that can be enjoyed with anything from the sea, particularly with a rich crustacean based sauce. ...

A sweet wine at Torbreck was always going to be something slightly different & we've been tinkering away at it since 2001. Muscat Blanc a petit grains from John Nietschke's Ebeneezer vineyard is harvested in several stages to acheive different levels of ripeness, creating a myriad of potential flavours. A small ammount of spirit is added to the fermenting wine to arrest the yeasts against further acivity & raise the alcohol level to around 14 percent. The grapes are gently crushed & pressed with as little skin contact as possible to minimize the phenolic content of the wine. The primary fermentation is slow in stainless steel tanks & is arrested mid ferment by the addition of brandy spirit, retaining the grape's natural sweetness. Equally as enjoyable as an aperitif as it is with dessert, the 2009 Bothie displays beautifully fragrant aromas of fresh pine/lime, melon & lychee accompanied by extraordinary floral notes. The subtle, clean flavours of lemon sorbet, lemon tart & orange rind balance perfectly with the residual sugar creating a full, lush, round palate. The Bothie typically displays lifted aromas of rose water, honeydew melon, lime & geranium. It's a very versatile wine that can be enjoyed either at the start of a meal or nicely chilled at the end with fresh fruit, ice creams or sorbets. ...

The 2010 Steading is composed from the traditional Barossa cultivars of Grenache, Shiraz & Mataro. It has long been a favourite wine within the Torbreck stable because of the old, gnarled 'bush vines' that produce its core. Deep ruby with flickers of violet, its delicate aromas of truffle, five spice & spring flowers are supported by a rich core of licorice, saddle leather & Provencal herbs. Very ' Burgundian' in style, the palate is elegant & pure with subtle notes of crushed cherries, earth & cedar all neatly wound by a taut spine of acidity & ripe supple tannins. The 2010 Steading will continue to unfold with time in the cellar & shall provide those with the patience great enjoyment for many years to come. 64% Grenache, 18% Shiraz, 18 Mataro. ...

The initial aromas of black raspberries, creme de cacao & star anise yield to a fragrant core of slow roasted meats, scorched earth & olive tapenade. Full bodied & tightly structured the palate shows perfect ripeness & brooding richness along with a razor-like spine of beautifully integrated acidity & fine tannin that will greatly reward those with the patience to cellar it. ...

The initial aromas of black raspberries, creme de cacao & star anise yield to a fragrant core of slow roasted meats, scorched earth & olive tapenade. Full bodied & tightly structured the palate shows perfect ripeness & brooding richness along with a razor-like spine of beautifully integrated acidity & fine tannin that will greatly reward those with the patience to cellar it. ...

Fruit from both vineyards (split into four separate parcels) was handpicked & gently 'whole bunch' pressed to individual vats where they were left to settle. After 24 hours the younger blocks were racked to tank whilst the older more robust parcels were transferred to 6 year old French barriques where they underwent a long cool fermentation. The various components were later assembled prior to bottling in November 2011. Semillon has always found a natural home in the Barossa. It was one of the early white wine grape varieties planted by the first settlers around 160 years ago & so the Barossa is blessed with a heritage of old, low yielding Semillon vineyards. At Torbreck, Semillon is fermented in both stainless steel & seasoned French barriques. Torbreck Woodcutters Semillon is not unlike the white wines found in the central & southern regions of France. This is due largely to the use of the Madeira (more robust & pink skinned) clone of Semillon, grown widely in the Barossa Valley. Although not typically lemony, this wine exhibits more complex aromas of smoked almonds & honeysuckle as well as buttery textures from the natural malolactic fermentation. The palate displays a spicy mineral flintiness with exotic fruit flavours. Medium bodied with a pristine lemon hue this youthful Semillon offers delicate scents of calamansi, limestone, candle wax, & toasted brioche. The copper-pink skins of this robust, age-old ' Madeira Clone' flesh out the palate, lending notes of almond kernels, soft pineapple, roasted cashew & white peach. Underlying notes of citrus oil & minerals maintain the wines freshness whilst a crisp spine of razor-like acidity neatly lace together the finish. Although beautifully enjoyable in its youth with sashimi & fresh shellfish this wine will continue to increase in complexity with time & should provide compelling drinking over the coming years. ...

Fruit from both vineyards (split into four separate parcels) was handpicked & gently 'whole bunch' pressed to individual vats where they were left to settle. After 24 hours the younger blocks were racked to tank whilst the older more robust parcels were transferred to 6 year old French barriques where they underwent a long cool fermentation. The various components were later assembled prior to bottling in November 2011. Semillon has always found a natural home in the Barossa. It was one of the early white wine grape varieties planted by the first settlers around 160 years ago & so the Barossa is blessed with a heritage of old, low yielding Semillon vineyards. At Torbreck, Semillon is fermented in both stainless steel & seasoned French barriques. Torbreck Woodcutters Semillon is not unlike the white wines found in the central & southern regions of France. This is due largely to the use of the Madeira (more robust & pink skinned) clone of Semillon, grown widely in the Barossa Valley. Although not typically lemony, this wine exhibits more complex aromas of smoked almonds & honeysuckle as well as buttery textures from the natural malolactic fermentation. The palate displays a spicy mineral flintiness with exotic fruit flavours. Medium bodied with a pristine lemon hue this youthful Semillon offers delicate scents of calamansi, limestone, candle wax, & toasted brioche. The copper-pink skins of this robust, age-old ' Madeira Clone' flesh out the palate, lending notes of almond kernels, soft pineapple, roasted cashew & white peach. Underlying notes of citrus oil & minerals maintain the wines freshness whilst a crisp spine of razor-like acidity neatly lace together the finish. Although beautifully enjoyable in its youth with sashimi & fresh shellfish this wine will continue to increase in complexity with time & should provide compelling drinking over the coming years. ...

The name Woodcutter's stems from David Powell's several years spent working the Scottish Highlands as a lumberjack in the Torbreck forest. Like all wines in the Torbreck stable, the fruit is sourced from hand harvested & hand tended plots throughout the Northwestern Barossa Valley. It is fermented in our cement, wooden & stainless steel vats for 6-7 days & then basket pressed to well seasoned hogsheads & French oak foudres for 12 months. It is bottled without the use of either fining or filtration. This wine reflects the up & coming Shiraz vineyards of the Barossa, rather than the battle hardened old vines which make up the core of our other cuvees. Dense, rich & opulent, this wine combines great fruit purity with texture, complexity & finesse. It is elegant, structured & powerful & is a fantastic introduction to the Torbreck range. Whilst offering immense pleasure in its youth the 2010 Woodcutter's Shiraz will no doubt develop into an impressive wine with a few years in the cellar. Although this wine is constantly praised for being succulent & rich
- perhaps the best feature of this wine is it's complexity & texture which are rarely found at this price.
...