2019 Torbreck Descendant

From a single vineyard planted in 1994 using cuttings from Run Rig vineyards, Descendant is a co-fermented blend of 93% Shiraz and 7% Viognier matured for 20 months in second fill French oak barriques previously used for Run Rig.
Super dense inky black purple in colour with a very deep dark purple black hue. Hedonistic ripe blackberry and liquorice scents meld into hints of apricot, plum, vanillin cedar and spice. Rich, voluptuously textured and powerful the full bodied palate is awash with succulent black cherry, liquorice and dark plum fruits. Spicy vanillin oak, earth, faint apricot and pepper characters lurk underneath. Velvety yet robust tannins deliver serious structure. Concludes exceptionally long and sumptuous.
Drink over the next 8-10 years.
Alc. 15%

Other Reviews…..
2019 followed the warm (but excellent) 2018 in the Barossa, and was marred by low yields and very concentrated fruit. 2020 was another step further down that low-yielding, dry track, completing a trio of concentrated, brooding vintages that are, as the years go by, harder and harder to get ahold of. So, the 2019 Descendant includes Viognier skins in the ferment, usually around 2%, and the fruit is sourced from vines planted from cuttings from the RunRig Vineyard. A baby Runrig, if you will. So, this is silky, slippery, tannic and intense, with layers of vibrant raspberry, jasmine tea, red licorice, jelly snakes and deli meat. As usual for the Torbreck reds, the texture of the wine is velvety, plush, intense and enveloping. This ages very well, we know it does, but if you must drink it early, decant it! Drink 2022-2037.
97+ points
Erin Larkin – Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate

Terrific intensity and depth with blackberry, blueberry, black ink, graphite and umami. Pencil shavings. Full and very fine with depth and richness. Co-fermented with 8% viogner. This is a wine that seduces you with its aromas and complexity. You just want to smell it. Give it three to four years to open. Try after 2025.
97 points
JamesSuckling.com