Jancis Robinson meets Colin Glaetzer

A drive round the BarossaValley in South Australia with veteran winemaker Colin Glaetzer last February made an indelible impression of this extraordinarily distinctive wine region currently in transition. Glaetzer, whose training included ferrying half-bottles of champagne to the late Ronald Avery of Bristol when he was in hospital, was famously responsible for E & E Black Pepper Shiraz, one of the BarossaValley’s gold standard reds of the current era. With his winemaker son Ben, he still specialises in making concentrated, savoury, warming reds based on fruit bought in from old, dry-farmed Shiraz vines grown in the Ebenezer district in the north west of the Valley.

We leave his winery on the outskirts of Tanunda and pass neat, freshly painted versions of Australia’s vernacular 1930s bungalows. Blinds are drawn to keep the glaring sunshine off three-piece suites. Rockeries are popular and lovingly maintained. Tall, pink, long-stemmed Easter lilies line the roadsides.

En route to the venerable vineyards of Ebenezer, one of Barossa’s distinctive terroirs, Glaetzer and his other son Sam who works for Foster’s Barossa Valley wine division, point out the famous Kalimna vineyard, source of some of Penfolds’ most revered raw ingredients. We pass the tiny Ebenezer community hall on a wide dirt track and a little tin-roofed church surrounded by trees – both obviously lovingly maintained.

At one point there are vines on both sides of the road. About the vineyard on the right, its vines weighed down with purple bunches, Glaetzer growls, 'the owners of that one are too keen on water. It’ll get to the point where we stop buying from them.' He approves of the much more sparsely-fruited, gnarled old vines on the left though. 'Some of the grapes from here go to us, some to Penfolds for Grange,' he says with a reference to Australia’s most famous wine. 'The fruit we use is mostly hand-picked'.

'By whom?' I ask, knowing how serious the labour shortage is in rural Australia. He keeps on driving but his brow furrows. 'They’re from – what’s that country, Sam?' 'Cambodia.' 'That’s right, Cambodia.' Throughout my time in South Australia I see vineyards worked by people who look as though they would be more at home in paddy fields.

 At the next vineyard we get out of the car and walk through the soft, red soil to inspect the vines more closely, because they will soon be picked by those useful Cambodian first-generation Australians. Colin is particularly pleased by the crop

level in this vineyard planted early last century. 'Good, small clusters,' he observes approvingly.

'The yield here’ll be about half a tonne per acre. If yields go over two tonnes an acres, you may as well buy your fruit upriver. Anything over two and you’ve lost the plot quality-wise.' South Australia’s most famous wine region is certainly very, very different from the state’s biggest, the heavily-irrigated Riverland, a vast tract of factory-farmed vines that stretches along the banks of the Murray River in Australia’s scorched interior.

I find many Barossa Shirazes unbalanced: picked too late they can be too alcoholic, dry and/or overripe, but the following represent animated rather than dead fruit and manage to combine depth of flavour with energy, interest and refreshment value: Glaetzer, Shiraz 2002

Tasting Notes on Jancis Robinson’ s website; www.jancisrobinson.com

GLAETZER: Impressive and extensive operation in Barossa Valley. Barossa Vintners is the name of the winery run by Colin Glaetzer (who once worked at Averys of Bristol and used to take halves of champagne to Ronald A when he was in hospital) and his son Ben, making wine for scores of producers, but Glaetzer is their own label (the Egyptian-inspired Amon-Ra is Ben’s own). Shareholders in Barossa Vintners include Henschke (the winery was built originally for Cyril H to retire to), Rockford, Penley and Woodstock. Barossa Vintners crushes around 10,000 tonnes of grapes and has made more than 1,000 wines from 26 varieties for more than 50 customers. UK importer Great Western Wines, US importer Conquest of New Orleans and Epicurean of Seattle.

Glaetzer, Wallace Shiraz/Grenache 2003 BarossaValley 16 Drink 2005-07

Very sweet and ripe. Well made by a very gentle hand. A very winning initial impression though the wood is a little drying on the finish.

Glaetzer, Bishop Shiraz 2002 BarossaValley 17 Drink now-2009

From 30- to 40-year-old vines that yield no more than 2 tons/acre, fermented in old American oak hogsheads. Low-key, rather subtle nose and fine tannins. Carries its 14 per cent alcohol well – the wine, or perhaps vintage in this case – seems quite admirably ‘cool’ and well balanced.

Glaetzer, Bishop Shiraz 2001 BarossaValley 17.5 Drink now-2008

This was one of very, very few instances in which I preferred the 2001 vintage of a South Australian red to the 2002 one (perhaps because some of the fruit that would normally go into the top Glaetzer Shiraz bottling was declassified into the

Bishop?). Indeed, this wine seemed almost more developed than the 2002, with more obvious minerality on the nose. Lovely balance – complete. Very soft and round, perhaps not the long-distance runner of the 2002 but a dry, appetising finish and should provide great drinking over the next few years.

Glaetzer, Shiraz 2002 BarossaValley 18.5 Drink now-2012

Cool, dense nose with great roundness of texture yet real energy and life. Savoury finish. Bristling with potential. Really animated fruit, much of it from fabulous early 20th century vineyards in Ebenezer, in the northwest of BarossaValley, flanked by vineyards that supply Grange. Yields are about half a ton an acre. This great wine was not made in 2003 or 2000.

Glaetzer, Shiraz 2001 BarossaValley 17.5 Drink now-2008

A bit more obvious and less subtle than the 2002 with a ripe berry fruit character and a sweet start. Some of the same mineral notes as the 2002 with quite a cool, dry end.

Glaetzer, Shiraz 1999 BarossaValley 18.5 Drink now-2009

Savoury, meaty with that minerality again. Lovely balance. Very fine and dense. A really complete, appetising wine, though the acidity is more obvious than on the Bishop bottlings. The 1998 was wonderful – opulent and scented with a good, dry finish. The 1997 also won me over with its muted elegance. The 1996 is now round and gentle but perhaps lacks the punch of its successors at this point in its evolution.

Amon-Ra 2003 BarossaValley 17.5 Drink now-2010

This is Ben Glaetzer’s super-modern Shiraz – full-on fruit matured in French oak (which is being used more and more for all the Glaetzer wines). This uses Ebenezer fruit, too, but to very different effect – much more dramatic and sweet, and at alcohol levels not much below 15 per cent. Very sweet and mocha – perhaps best drunk as a nightcap.