Sydney visit by Barossa-based Teusner to the White Bay Brewery pouring the whole current release range, plus private bottlings from proprietor Kyn Teusner under his Utopos label, along with a new range of ‘Righteous” wines under the Teusner brand (of which I tasted only the FG Shiraz). Half tasting, half commercial event. Prices below are from the wineries’ respective websites; flights per the official tasting sheet. As ever with a walk-around tasting, notes tend to be cursory, even a bit repetitive (with one region and few different varieties) and impressionistic rather than comprehensive.
The Indy Crew
The commercial labels, widely available. Solid varietal offerings, honest wines that aren’t tricked up, and very decent value. The shirazes have marginally different fruit sources and winery handling, but there’s not a huge distinction between them, to be honest. Among the reds I liked the cabernet best (varietal preference showing!) but marginally preferred the Bilmore among the rhone grapes.
- 2024 Teusner Riesling The Empress - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Eden Valley
{screwcap, A$30} Musk, sweet apple juice aromas. Less intense palate, a bit watery, with more general citrus qualities. Medium acid, dry, light-bodied. Short/medium length finish. Needs a little time to settle, but not too much. - 2025 Teusner Fiano Lucius - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 12.5%, A$} Rosewater & pot-pourri nose. Models gewurz. But the palate is more varietally-true, with lightly tropical but dry fruit flavours. No oak. Light/medium weight, low/medium acidity. Warm character. Shortish finish, on the front of the tongue. Pleasant but not special. - 2024 Teusner Salsa Rosé - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, A$25} Onion-skin colour. Mild strawberry aromas. Smeary, impressionistic palate of generic red-berry flavours with some gentle grape-skin astringency. Monet not Mondrian. Light-bodied, dry, fairly short finish. - 2023 Teusner Grenache The G - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$35} Oak-free grenache. Raspberry, jam, vanilla. Rich and jubey. Strawberries-and-cream light/medium-bodied palate, low/medium dusty tannins, medium acid. Dry, but a touch short. - 2022 Teusner The Independent - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$30} Ripe nose, showing a rustic fruit aspect. Blackberry and chewing gum flavours. A little bit of soft oak gives low dusty tannins. There’s medium acidity, but it’s still only really light/medium in weight. Shortish finish, towards the front of the tongue. Fair. - 2022 Teusner Shiraz Bilmore - Australia, South Australia, Barossa
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$30} Fruit-driven blackberry & spice shiraz, with minimal oak. Low dusty tannins, medium acid & weight. Quite warm on the palate, but not sweet, other than a certain fruit-derived ripeness. Short/medium finish. - 2021 Teusner Shiraz 'The Riebke' Northern Barossa - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$30} Sweet plums and jam. Medium-bodied effort with medium acidity and low/medium chalky tannins. Subtle oak. Decently dry on palate, if maybe a little dilute for flavour. Maybe the vintage difference against Bilmore didn’t help, although I though 21 was a supposed to be a better vintage overall. Huh. - 2023 Teusner Shiraz The Wark Family Stonewell - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$32} This seemed more vanilla-infused than the previous shirazes (oak?). Dusty but blackberry-focussed palate. Medium weight but quite soft acidity here. Again, a bit light on the mid-palate and with a slightly short finish. Perhaps the least of these reds for me. - 2022 Teusner Cabernet Sauvignon The Gentleman - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Eden Valley
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$30} The currant fruit pervading this instantly distinguishes it from the shiraz bottlings. Medium dusty tannins are quite evident, with medium acid. It’s sits a little on the front palate too, but still manages a medium length dry finish, varietally correct. Medium bodied wine that will soften nicely over five years or so.
The premium range, most with a good couple of decades provenance nowadays. Still very good value.
- 2020 Teusner Shiraz MC - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{crown seal, 14%, A$70} Around 18/20g of RS only serves to flesh out the palate, which is rich with liquorice and blueberry flavours. 18 months on lees. Fine dusty tannins, medium/full weight, medium-sized creamy bubbles and medium acid are the structural elements. Lovely example of the style, with not a hair out of place. Not a bargain, but very good all the same. - 2024 Teusner Joshua - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$37} The purest, oak-free expression of this 60/30/10/ rhone blend, in which Teusner always seem to make the shiraz the third leg. It’s got a ripe jamminess about it then, with blackberries and a faintly rustic hint. Low, dusty, skin-tannins, medium acidity. The rich fruit gives it medium weight presence. Medium length, tidy finish too. Very young though. - 2023 Teusner Avatar - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$45} A kind of ‘Joshua+oak’ cuvee, this is stylistically similar to the previous wine, but with just a vanilla seasoning from old oak. Similar raspberry/blueberry fruit. Medium/full weight, but still with gently friendly dusty tannins and medium acidity. Carries heat well enough. Medium length finish. - 2022 Teusner Mataro The Dog Strangler - Australia, South Australia, Barossa
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$37} Some small bunch ferment and old oak are key elements here. Oak seems more texture than flavour – this seems all rustic raspberries. Juicy on the palate, medium/full in weight, with chalky skin-tannins building on the palate. Even mid-palate, medium length finish. I’m not usually a big fan of stand-alone mataro but this is pretty decent. - 2022 Teusner Shiraz Albert - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$70} 30% new oak certainly helps the polish of this, but it’s also stuffed with rich black plum fruit at peak ripeness without being raisiny. Hint of mint as well on the nose, but that disappears on the luscious and spicy palate. Medium/full body with more blue-tinged fruit than black. Medium dusty tannins, decent acid. All about balance, this wine. From northern blocks at Ebenezer and Koonunga. - 2021 Teusner Shiraz 'Big Jim' - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$70} From Wark family vineyards at Stonewell. 50% new oak. Blueberry and plum fruit. Rich, juicy and powerful. Medium/full-bodied, with medium chalky tannins. Plenty of mid-palate presence. Medium acid, medium/long finish. It’s good, but I don’t think the extra oak influence lifts it above the Albert cuvee. Vintage is different, of course, so not a fair comparison. - 2022 Teusner Cabernet Sauvignon Kavalier - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$75} Well-made shiraz often seems drinkable – with different perspectives – at almost any age. Not so with cabernet; there’s a lot to miss here at this early stage of life. Dark currant fruit without too much mint. A little coconut, yes, possibly oak derived. 20% new oak, mixed sizes. Eden and Barossa fruit. Medium dusty tannin, understated acidity. Even palate, medium/long finish. This is very classy, but wants another five years’ cellaring at least. - NV Teusner Rare Tawny - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 21%} A very brandyish fortified, with rancio and camphor qualities. Full-bodied and warm, like drinking liquid sweet old liquid barrels. Plenty of acidity but always with a syrupy texture and warm, long finish. Fine example of the style. Branded "Volken". First release?
Newish Teusner ‘Righteous’ flagships, plus ‘Utopos’ wines off Kym’s personal vineyards in heavy bottles with wax tops. All new to me. I did skip the single variety Grenache & Mataro bottlings (both Righteous and Utopos labels) – probably a mistake in retrospect. I rather suspect the Utopos pricing might reflect rarity (& packaging!) more than inherent quality over the Teusner-branded wines.
- 2022 UTOPOS Mataro Shiraz Grenache - Australia, South Australia, Barossa
{cork, 14.5%, A$85} Youthful bubble-gum grenache with chocolatey shiraz. Low/medium powdery tannins, light/medium body, medium acid. Rustic, savoury sort of palate, peppery, almost-medium length finish. OK wine, but not worth the premium over, say, the Avatar, even allowing for the different style and varietal proportions. - 2022 UTOPOS Shiraz - Australia, South Australia, Barossa
{cork, 14.5%, A$85} Choco-mint style shiraz, a bit savoury, about medium weight, low/medium gritty tannins, short/medium length finish. - 2022 UTOPOS Cabernet Sauvignon - Australia, South Australia, Barossa
{cork, 14.5%, A$85} Fine blackcurrant cabernet. Lacey, medium powdery tannins, medium weight and acidity. All warm-climate, polished and tidy. Needs some time. But still seems a soft and gentle wine overall. - 2021 UTOPOS Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz - Australia, South Australia, Barossa
{cork, 14.5%, A$165} A 70/30 blend that sees around 25% new oak. Sourced from Marananga & Greenock. Black chocolate and olive cabernet dominates spicy shiraz. Some vanilla too, though the oak is more of a subtle seasoning than a big flavour hit. Medium/full weight. Medium dusty tannins. Even balanced palate, medium/long finish. A worthy representative of the Great Australian Red. Should improve nicely over five years at least. - 2019 (E)UTOPOS Shiraz - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{cork, 14.5%, A$280} The best fruit off the vineyard; a mere 1150 bottles made. Predominantly shiraz, with additional Mataro, Grenache, Cabernet making up 9%/4%/1% of the total. Even palate of spice and chocolate, plums, blueberry. Medium/full in weight, with medium powdery tannins and soft acidity. Sweetly-fruited, with a luxurious medium/long finish. Very good wine, although no bargain. - 2021 Teusner Shiraz The FG Righteous - Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley
{screwcap, 14.5%, A$170} 250 dozen bottles made of this barrel-selection (60% new oak) flagship. Aromatic spice & blueberries, gentle cedary oak, chocolate. Medium to full bodied, with fine medium dusty tannins and impeccable balance along the tongue. Pity this was wine no 23 today, because it deserved more attention than I was able to give it. But it’s very impressive, both now and for a decade I’d think.