95 Points - Jane Faulkner
Craiglee is one of the finest examples of cool-climate Shiraz produced in Australia and a wine that always draws plenty of attention. The 2017 Craiglee Sunbury Shiraz is the 41st vintage of Craiglee Shiraz, while also marking the 154th anniversary of this legendary vineyard's founding in 1863.
A brilliant addition to any cellar, the 2017 vintage is aromatic and impeccably structured; the intensity of flavour, balance and lively bright fruit ensures this is a wine with a long life ahead of it.
"95 Points. Pure, unadulterated Craiglee shiraz. Nothing like it. It's the fragrance, the confluence of dark and red fruit, the grind of black pepper, the thyme and its savoury nature. It retains a certain elegance and length across the more medium-bodied palate. Fresh acidity and grainy tannins neatly in tow. Lovely now, even better in years to come. Screw cap. 13.5% alc. To 2023. $60"- Jane Faulkner, Halliday Wine Companion 2022.
"94 Points. I look forward to Craiglee wines each year. Stone cold classics. A more open weave, supple release strong in raspberry, sweet earth, blackberries on brambles, fennel, pleasing eucalyptus notes with some judicious clove-woody seasoning. Perfume and flavours match. Shimmers and shines in the palate, glossy texture met with a wrap of light, lacy tannins. Almost refreshing in acidity too, so bright, lively and cool. You’d whisper ‘pinosity’ here. A little out of the box for Craiglee in ‘style’, but delightful, so excellent to drink, fine in detail, precise as always. Thanks heaps. Tasted: AUG21 13.5% alc. $60 Screwcap Drink: 2021 - 2040" - Mike Bennie, The Wine Front.
"94/100. Succulent, beautifully balanced, mid-weight Victorian Shiraz. The graceful power here aligns with other Vic Shiraz classics like Mount Langi Shiraz, Best’s Bin 0 et al. Force in a velvet glove. Raspberry fruit is the champion, ripe, gentle, but not underpowered. Plenty of acidity, too, and the tannins have a faint bitterness, just to ground things. Has this beautiful, gently mushroom edge to the red fruit for interest – a crafted, timeless wine. Best drinking: now, or in twenty years. That balance (and a screwcap) ensures it will live forever. 18.5/20, 94/100. 13.5%, $60"- Andrew Graham, ozwinereview.com.
