Ranked #1 of 23 2016 Shiraz Viognier from Barossa Valley
98/100
5 Stars
Huon Hooke
This is a great RunRig that will be wowing drinkers for a couple of decades to come. Very deep, dense, opaque colour, with lots of purple. It's very rich, ripe and fruit-sweet to sniff, with a powerful, lush palate filled with voluminous flavour. A colossal wine, thickly textured, with great flavour and potential. A tremendous wine that is lovely to drink now - but it's infanticide to open it just yet.
Tasted: 21/05/2019
Drink: 2022 to 2046
100 Points Robert Parker
A blend of 98% Shiraz and 2% Viognier made just prior to bottling, the 2016 RunRig is a complete masterpiece. It kicks off with elegant notes of pencil shavings accenting blueberries and blackberries on the nose, then shows incredible, palate-staining intensity of fruit in the mouth. It's full-bodied, plush and velvety without being unstructured and manages to be fruit-forward yet savory on the long-lasting finish, where it picks up hints of mocha and black olives. This should be drinkable with pleasure throughout its entire two-decade life (it may live longer from cold cellars or in larger formats), but if I were lucky enough to have a bottle or two, I'd try the first one about 10 years out. Drink 2019 - 2035.
Source: Robert Parker.