Reviews of 2020 Grenache Mataro:

93 points, James Suckling 2021, Nick Stock:
"Strikingly bright and fresh raspberry aromas here with wild herbs and bracken, as well as leafy tones. Lively red and blue fruit sits concentrated on the palate. A fresh blend of 70% grenache and 30% mataro."

90 points, Halliday Companion 2022, Ned Goodwin:
"Hand picked, with a smidgeon of whole bunches (10%) in the 70% grenache. The oak, all used barriques. Sweet floral aromas segue to Turkish delight and kirsch. White pepper, Seville orange zest and clove lace the long finish. Sappy, crunchy and yet, a bit sweet."

Reviews of 2019 Grenache Mataro:

92 Points Winefront by Mike Bennie: "From good folks comes a good wine of good grapes from two good vineyards. Tension is the first thing that came to mind. This ain’t no blousy red. No, indeed, it sits on train tracks of tannin and acidity, a good bite of amaro tang and amongst all that some jubey, blackcurrant fruitiness. Perfume is mild but floral-leaning with dashes of peppery spice. It’s a wine that has you sit up straight and pay attention. It’s a bit serious, but good in that way. Medium weight, svelte, tense. Good stuff."

Reviews of 2018 Grenache Mataro:

James Halliday, Wine Companion, January 2020, 95 points and top value wine:
"Classic southern Rhône Valley style, with the wild herbs and spices of the garrigue giving pleasure in the rims of aromas and flavours alike. It will be hard to keep your hands of it, but it could be a knockout with more time in bottle. 14.5% alc."

92 Points, James Suckling:
"Bright, red-fruit fragrance here with some darker berries in the mix, too. The palate is crisp, succulent and juicy, as a good young grenache should be."

Mike Bennie - WBM March/April 2020, 93 points:
"There's a really lovely marriage of sweeter fruit gamey, earthy characters in this wine. I like the general sense of detail in the wine too - sheets of fruit character layered on spice, savouriness and a fresh pool of acidity. It feels quietly complex but wildly drinkable."

Reviews of 2017 Grenache Mataro:

James Halliday, Wine Companion, August 2018, 94 points and red value star:
"Superb colour; at maximum turbocharged revolutions, but the power is smoothly delivered across the palate. Because the balance is very good, this richly endowed wine will repay cellaring particularly well."

Mike Bennie, WBM July 2018, 93 points:
"Lovely stuff. Fragrant with musky-spice, raspberry and cranberry scents. The palate does a similar turn and sits squarely in a medium wieght wine zone. Some heft to the flavours but the finish is a bell ring of clean acidity. Appealing as. 14.5%, $27."

Decanter World Wine Awards. Silver Medal. 93 points. www.decanter.com 

Reviews of 2016 Grenache Mataro:

Andrew Graham, Oz Wine Review, June 2017, www.ozwinereview.com
"The Leask Brothers are switched on growers and these wines typically show plenty of sunny generosity (if sometimes a little heat). The blend here is 60/40 Grenache Mataro; a good mix. Lots of juicy black and red berry fruit. Lovely. The tannins have a real sandy Grenachey shape to them (but with a licoricey oomph). Palate is silky smooth, slightly syrupy but really quite satisfying in its curranty flow, a big luscious wines that is very young, but exuberantly so. It could do with another year in bottle to integrate the bold flavours a little, but the flow of red fruit is undeniably attractive. Very well priced too. Best drinking: 2018-2028. 17.7/20, 92/100+. 14.5%, $25."

Gary Walsh, The Wine Front, May 2017, www.winefront.com.au
"60% Grenache, 40% Mataro. I don’t have a feel for 2016 in McLaren Vale, as yet, but so far, I like what I see. A hearty red, but one that’s not too heavy. Red fruits, some floral perfume, slight confectionary notes, but tapered in with dried herb. It’s medium bodied, juicy and savoury at once, with a rub of sandy tannin, fresh red fruits, and a gently bitter amaro herb and earthy aftertaste. This goes all right. Good drinking here." 91 points

Huon Hooke, April 2017, www.huonhooke.com
"Deep red/purple colour, the bouquet black cherry, spices, firm tannins and good body weight. A nicely judged kiss of oak. Balanced and complete." 90 points

Stuart Robinson, May 2017, www.thevinsomniac.com
"Nigh on pitch-perfect 60/40 blend of two listed players. There's just something so wickedly, consistently, deliciously moreish about H&Y reds. This no exception, it extracts a juicy, jubey aromatic without straying too far towards confection. Call it an allure, call it what you will, inviting is what it is. Slipping around the palate with ease in its easy going, red fruited nature. There's more juicy red fruit, a slip of tannin providing an edge, a framework to carry. Mataro brings up the rear, it's bassy foundations adding length, substance, spice." 91 points

Reviews of 2015 Grenache Mataro:

August 2016. 90 Points. Huon Hooke. www.huonhooke.com
"Spicy, sweet cherry, confectionery aromas. The palate is tight and lean with firm, fine tannins and a pleasant after-grip. A good, clean, bright wine of some depth. Very smart wine."

August 2016. James Halliday, Wine Companion. 92 Points www.winecompanion.com.au
"Aromas and flavours are both savoury and sweet-fruited with raspberry, chocolate, and mulchy notes in the mix. Well integrated tannin and acid keeps things fresh and in order. "

May 2016. Max Allen, Australian Gourmet Traveller. www.gourmettraveller.com.au
Top Drops of the Month, No 1. "heaps of juicy red berry-fruit flavours, but there is also a delicious gutsy earthiness-like sweet black composting leaf litter-that sets it apart".

March 2016. Stuart Robinson. 91 points. www.the vinsomniac.com.au
A 60/40 blend of Grenache and Mataro respectively, and 100% McLaren Vale. Raspberry, red fruit, some wild herb/garrigue thing with a choc-raspberry-fudge milkshake. Trust me, it works. Juicy, a little dark fruit, chocolate, fine tannin; palate enlivening acidity that brings back the wine full circle. There's fruit in abundance, a little savoury tickle, good length. Another stellar wine.

February 2016. Winsor Dobbin. www.winsorschoice.blogspot.com.au
This is a fabulously accessible blend of 60% grenache and 40% mataro – the ripe, sweet grenache fruit melding with the earthy funkiness of the mataro to produce a beautifully balanced red that is designed for immediate enjoyment. No need to cellar this one; just put some gourmet sausages on the barbeque and you have a wine/food match made in heaven.

February 2016. 90 points. Gary Walsh. www.winefront.com.au
Good stuff. It’s crisp and perky, almost Italianate. Raspberry rope, strawberry, dried herb perfume. Medium bodied, crunchy and fresh, red fruits, light sandy tannin, more red fruits on the finish. Almost a ‘volcanic rock’ kind of thing going on. Nice to see a McLaren Vale wine that so bright and ‘food friendly’.

Reviews of 2020 Leask Grenache:

91 points, Halliday Companion 2022, Ned Goodwin:
"Old vines, dating from the 1940’s. Fermented wild in open-top fermenters. A brief maceration compared to the regional vanguard, with just 11 days on skins. Three years in used 400L French wood. Whole-berry aromatics of kirsch, rosewater and mulled wine. A swathe of menthol-laced tannins define the mid palate, while drying the finish. There is a lightness of being. A welcome pliancy, too. Just too minty."

Reviews of 2019 Leask Grenache:

93 points, James Suckling 2021, Nick Stock:
"Fresh raspberry, wild-herb and wet-stone aromas here with pomegranate and blood orange, as well as dried flowers. The palate holds a succulent line of tannin and fresh, bright raspberries, together with kumquat and blood orange. I like the sturdiness here."

90 points, Halliday Companion 2022, Ned Goodwin MW:
"A pallid ruby, with a spindly shaft of fibrous tannins, crunchy red berry and pomegranate scents heralding better Vale grenache. A vibrant grenache, showcasing a transparent pinosity."

Reviews of 2018 Leask Grenache:

95 points, Jane Faulkner, James Halliday Wine Companion, August 2021:
"Vines planted in the '40s, whole berry with 10% whole bunches, cultured yeast and aged in French puncheons for 17 months. There's a lightness across the palate from fine sandpaper tannins and cherry and raspberry fruit. It's a lovely wine with savoury inputs and not at all confected. A whiff of pine needle/Mediterranean herbs comes and goes."

92 points, James Suckling:
"There's quite a fresh and attractively crisp feel to this gently bold expression of Christie's Beach Formation soil type. The berries tread the line from red to darker tones and there's a savory, earthy edge. The palate has a succulently, bold and fluid feel with attractive tannin grain and a little grip."

Reviews of the 2017 Old Vine Grenache:
97 points, James Halliday 2020 Wine Companion: "The sparks fly. It's rare for such a light wine to feel so imposing. The fruit is crisp and spicy, aniseed notes almost seem unsweetened, there's mint served in ever-so-pure form, and the way tannin introduces tension to the wine's unfolding drama is quite exquisite. It's grenache in a sky full of diamonds. It's something."

Reviews of 2016 Grenache:
James Halliday, Wine Companion, August 2018, 97 points: "The first 100% varietal grenache by Hither & Yon. Bright, clear colour; a perfumed rose petal, spice and red fruits bouquet, the palate 100% delicious. A beautiful, effortless achievement of perfection, the red fruits and satin smooth tannins show none of the hot alcohol, dead fruit characters that I'm sure other makers might have achieved. I'm marching off with this to drink tonight."

Mike Bennie, WBM July 2018, 94 points:
"Pretty, perfumed Grenache of high-toned floral and sweet spice fragrance, medium weight red berry fruitiness, a layer of vanilla-clove spice running riot. A plush, velvety feel to texture, too. Big tick for quality at price point. 14.2%, $80."

Reviews of 2019 Aglianico:

87 points, Halliday Companion 2022, Ned Goodwin:
"Ascendancy is incremental here, with small details improved each year. Hand picked, a longer maceration, a judicious meld of whole berries, crushed material and a dollop of whole bunches, and larger French oak, noted. A mid ruby. Notes of tobacco leaf, sour red fruits and verdant herb. Seems to have been picked on acidity, rather than ripeness. Decent drinking, but better with more weight and ripeness. " 

Reviews of 2018 Aglianico:

91 points, James Suckling 2021, Nick Stock:
"Plenty of spices on the nose, such as cinnamon and anise, with ripe plum and blood orange, as well as berry biscuit and brown tea. The palate has fine but assertive tannins that have been gently cut to deliver a crisp finish with bright red-cherry flavor. "

90 points, Halliday Companion 2022, Ned Goodwin:
"Hand picked and fermented with 10% each whole berries and whole bunches. Brooding, compact and forceful. Reliant on a phalanx of tobacco-crusted tannins, both as homage to great Campanian expressions as much as a savoury lance, fending off excess. Damson plum, cherry pith, mint and agrodolce scents. " 

Reviews of 2017 Aglianico:

91 points, Mike Bennie, The Wine Front:
"Strawberry chocolate and mint bouquet. Wild! Game meat in the mix of that unusual perfume combo, flavours do the same, it feels wide and loose but tannin comes late and rumbles. Mad style this. Kind of all over the place, great to sip on, I like the mojo, but expect something different."

90 points, James Suckling:
"There's a fresh, red plum and berry nose here with an earthy, savoury edge on the palate, as well as ripe, gently sinewy tannins."


Reviews of 2016 Aglianico:

92 points, James Halliday 2020 Wine Companion
"Kind of leathery, kind of chocolatey, kind of berried. The net effect is pleasant plus. Firm, graphite-infused tannin and an impressive push of flavour through the finish add up to a wine worthy of respect."

Reviews of 2015 Aglianico:

93 points Decanter, Sarah Ahmed:
"This is a compellingly savoury, brawnier take on another southern Italian grape. Long and textural, with blackberry, salted black olives, leather, violets, bitter chocolate and wormwood."


Reviews of 2014 Aglianico:

Decanter World Wine Awards. May 2016. www.decanter.com 93 points.
"Black plum, lots of spice and a touch of leather. Lovely structure, fresh acidity, firm tannins, raspberry notes and a long savoury finish."

Campbell Mattinson. September 2016. www.thewinefront.com.au 90 points.
"An interesting wine from an interesting producer. Volcanic rocks. It’s an odd descriptor and I cannot profess to have licked too many, but taste this wine and the volcanic rock descriptor springs to mind. Such is wine. Such perhaps is the power of suggestion. This is ferrous and cherried, has a flash of garden herbs, and while light in both colour and flavour, it makes an impression. Something different in a good way. I can’t promise that you’ll taste ‘volcanic rocks’ too, but you will see that the flavour profile here rushes outside the norm."

Stuart Robinson. December 2016. www.thevinsomniac.com 91 points.
"Savoury, of ash and bloodstock, liquorice; there's florals in the mix too, wild herbs. Light, airy, has the pumice stone lightness often seen in volcanic reds; red fruit, raspberry and cherry, juicy flowing length. Such a delicious consistency to this portfolio. Beautiful to drink."

Reviews of 2013 Aglianico:

Australian Alternative Varieties Wine Show, Novbember 2015.
Gold Medal.

Sarah Ahmed. October 2015. The Wine Detective. www.thewinedetective.co.uk
"It’s a favourite grape which I sort of bunch together with Piedmont’s Nebbiolo and Portugal’s Baga – capable of wonderful aromatics and butch tannins – hopefully with enough fruit to join the dots between nose to tail. Very spicy with leather and inky florals to its plum and red berry fruit; ripe but present tannins and persistent acidity make for a well disciplined, serious finish. 12.6%"

Andrew Graham. June 2015. Australian Wine Review. www.ozwinereview.com 93 points
"Of all the new generation Mediterranean red grapes to come our way, I've got to pick Aglianico as one of my favourites. Too get this much structure and flavour at 12.6% alcohol suggests that Aglianico might like it in McLaren Vale too. Bright plum red; the nose has a soft red fruit fragrance - there's a reference on the back label to 'pink marshmallow' which I think is great. Sappy, dry palate is framed with tannins - bitter, mouth-cleansing, proper tannins. Complement that with some cherry red fruit late juiciness and you've got frankly one utterly delicious, dry and savoury red. Massive yes."

Tony Love. June 2015. The Advertiser - Taste. 4 and 1/2 Stars out of 5.
"Ripping along with its mix of earthy herbs, anise-led spices and classic trio of cherry, plum and raspberry fruits, all slammed in there with a lightness of being; and fine medium bodied flow. Speaks lucidly of its origins and its new home - a delightful drink."

Gary Walsh. May 2015. www.thewinefront.com.au 91 points
"Such a good grape Aglianico. I’m betting we’re going to see much more if it grown locally in the coming years. This is a good go at Aglianico. Cherry and juicy raspberry, liquorice, that typical, for want of better words, ‘volcanic rocks’ character that this grape often has, plus maybe some flowers. Medium bodied, well etched acidity and dry tannin almost scrapes it along the palate (in a good way), and bright juicy fruit, aromatic herbs and dusty tannin close it out. Refreshing style with a bit of complexity. In some ways, not an easy wine to rate, though it’s certainly easy to recommend."

Stuart Robinson. May 2015. www.thevinsomniac.com 90 points.
"Licorice root, amaro/bitter wood and herb - deliciously savoury with a dark undercurrent. Fruit, by way of cherry and plum, with a moreish tang and juiciness. That black edge reappears on the back palate - a little licorice root against the lighter touch of raspberry over spice."

James Halliday. July 2015. www.thewinecompanion.com.au 90 points
"Light, bright colour; a lively, indeed wild, ride: there's a lot of red fruits criss-crossed by herbs and brisk acidity."

Reviews of 2021 Petit Blanc:

91 points, Halliday Companion 2022, Ned Goodwin:
"While it is not on the label, this is straight up muscat à petits grains. Light-weight, beautifully aromatic and palpably dry, this is the sort of wine served as an apero while staring at the Mediterranean, from the Languedoc to the Côte d'Azur. Honey blossom, jasmine, musk, grape spice, dill and a rub of citrus unwind across a talcy palate. Delicious drinking."

90 points, James Suckling 2021, Nick Stock:
"Aromas of cut grass, lemon juice and peel and fresh-picked sage make a fresh impression on the nose, as well as lychee and honey. The palate has a smooth, softly fleshy feel with pear pastry. Fresh finish."

Reviews of 2020 Petit Blanc:
Mike Bennie, Winefront, 91 points:
"What a fun thing from H&Y. And good thing. Cucumber, lemon squash, green herbs. Good scents. Lots of juicy, bouncy fun in the palate. More cucumber, lemon squash, Real Lemonade perhaps, some green apple. Zingy finish whips things tart and clean. Good times. Lots of personality and lots of drinkability."

91 points, Halliday Companion 2022, Ned Goodwin MW, :
"This is fun! Grapey and spicy. Think canned lychee, orange blossom and jasmine scents, all careening along talcy rails of chew and acid freshness. The finish is dry and has plenty of pucker. Drink with gusto."

Reviews of 2019 Petit Blanc:
Adelaide Review 2020, Hot 100 Wines, Light Aromatic Wines: "An intriguing wine with a light aromatic lift, initial savoury aromas are followed by necatarine, orange, and nashi pear. This wine is deliciously weighted with a pleasing phenolic grip and lovely acid".

Reviews of 2018 Petit Blanc:
90 points, James Halliday 2020 Wine Companion

"Citrus and tropical fruit flavours are attractive enough, but the slippery-satiny nature of the texture here makes this pretty white wine enjoyable to say the least." 

Reviews of 2017 Petit Blanc:
Gary Walsh, The Wine Front, September 2017 www.winefront.com.au

"Made from Muscat Blanc a’ Petits Grains. I don’t recommend most white wines be served too chilled, but I think this style is best served with a bit of frost on it. Perfumed and musky, kind of light and briny too, with delicate flavour, mainly lemon and lemon barley. It’s got zip and freshness, a bit of fragrance, and it’s VERY easy to smash down with gay abandon. A wonderful wine for summer luncheons, and the like, preferably featuring a sea breeze. I like it, but it is what it is, and that, in this case, is a good thing. The simple things etc." 88 points.

Huon Hooke, November 2017, www.huonhooke.com
"Pale almost water-white colour and a pungent muscat fruit aroma, which is clean as a whistle and appropriately fragrant. Passionfruit traces. The wine is surprisingly dry in the mouth, like a French muscat blanc sec. As such, it would make a good aperitif wine. A very good, if simple, varietal dry white." 89 points

James Halliday, 1 August 2018, www.winecompanion.com.au
"The fact that its grape variety (muscat blanc à petit grains) might cause people to expect an off-dry wine is neither here nor there, hither or yon. It's fresh, delicate, crisp, dry and faintly lemony." 88 points