Recognition

Category: Whalebone Vineyard

“Textbook example of this blend” 95 Points – Campbell Mattinson | Halliday Wine Companion – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz 2019

Author: Campbell Mattinson
Source: Halliday Wine Companion
Date: Jun 2024

The effect of Shiraz on this blend is significant. It’s a wine threaded with herbal, tobacco-like graphite and mint notes, and structurally it feels very cabernet too, in that the tannin has a strictness to it. But then the mid-palate …

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“Does have plenty of oomph and character” 92 Points – Gary Walsh | Wine Front – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Merlot Cabernet Franc 2019

Author: Gary Walsh
Source: Wine Front
Date: Jun 2024

Blackcurrant, redcurrant, hazelnut and chocolate (praline), a fair amount of mint, sage and bay leaf adds perfume, along with some spice and cedar oak. It also has a dusty amaro-like quality, which I like. Medium to full-bodied, dusty and peppery, …

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“Pulls cool and long on the finish” 92 Points – Gary Walsh | Wine Front – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz 2019

Author: Gary Walsh
Source: Wine Front
Date: Jun 2024

Lots of liquorice, mint, black fruit, camphor, cedar. Medium to full-bodied, lots of black fruit and mint, tobacco laced, with grainy tannin grip, shows some warming alcohol, but pulls cool and long on the finish, albeit a little grainy and …

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“Has the soul of an Old World wine, but the charm of the New World” – Wine Worth Writing About – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Merlot Cabernet Franc 2019

Author:
Source: Wine Worth Writing About
Date: Jun 2024

Deep red ruby with a finely woven and complex nose of violets, orange zest, macerated strawberry and dried cherry tomato, black fruits, fig leaf, mint tea, savoury undergrowth, tobacco, cedar and crushed gravel minerality.

In the mouth it’s juicy, but …

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“Elegant, finely structured with a tight physique” – Wines Worth Writing About – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz 2019

Author:
Source: Wines Worth Writing About
Date: Jun 2024

Deep ruby with a beautiful nose of potpourri, a touch of lemon rind, raspberry licorice, brambly berries, cassis, bayleaf, thyme, Sicilian olive, roasted beef, pencil shavings, cedar and a sanguine mineral quality. 
In the mouth it’s dry, elegant, finely structured …

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“Could throw out a decent challenge to the Right Bank.” 97 points – Ray Jordan | Wine Pilot – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Merlot Cabernet Franc 2019

Author: Ray Jordan
Source: Wine Pilot
Date: Jun 2024

This is a 55% merlot and 45% cabernet franc blend made in a similar way to the cabernet shiraz. The colour is low intensity with bright crimson purple hues. The aroma shows superb black fruits, and dark plum with a

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“Elegant, refined and stylish.” 96 Points – Ray Jordan | Wine Pilot – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz 2019

Author: Ray Jordan
Source: Wine Pilot
Date: Jun 2024

Elegant, refined and stylish. The fruit comes from down at Wrattonbully and is taken up the winery in Piccadilly. Both varieties are kept separate during the fermentation and maturation stages before blending after 17 months in barriques. Bright crimson hues

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History in a bottle – Whale of a time

Author: Tony Love
Source: SA Life
Date: Jun 2024

South Australia’s wine story includes many well-worn tales of adventures into the unknown, maddening enterprise and celebrated family sagas. But then there are the more secret histories, which live on today in wines that reflect their colourful stories. Here, we …

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“Though bold, it’s very elegant, well balanced and finishes clean.” – WineWorthWritingAbout | 2017 Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Merlot Cabernet Franc

Author:
Source: WineWorthWritingAbout
Date: Nov 2023

Dark, impenetrable ruby and purple with a complex and savoury edged nose of violets, cassis, grilled cherry and plum, dried oregano, hints of mint tea, fig leaf, roasted meat, cedar, tobacco, graphite and a lift of sumac. Lots going on!…

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Croser to showcase cool-climate credentials of the Adelaide Hills

Author: Margaret Rand
Source: Wine Searcher
Date: Jul 2023

The wine industry in Australia can be a parochial business, so kudos to an event in Victoria that is to put a spotlight on the wines of the Adelaide Hills.

For the first time, the International Cool Climate Wine Show …

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Legendary Australian winemaker Brian Croser explains his Chardonnay through a Riesling lens

Author: Margaret Rand
Source: Wine Searcher
Date: Jul 2023

© Tapanappa | Brian Croser is one of South Australia’s most respected winemakers

What would Brian Croser say to his younger self? “Be patient, and trust the vineyard. The mistakes I’ve made in winemaking, which are legion, are because I’ve …

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Richness and concentration Well trimmed on the palate in beautiful crafted tannins | 93 points | Halliday Wine Companion- Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Blend 2020

Author: Jeni Port
Source: Halliday Wine Companion
Date: May 2023

52/24/24% cabernet sauvignon/merlot/cabernet franc, each fermented separately. Matured for 20 months in new French barriques before blending; 420 dozen made. Poor flowering and fruit set in 2020 resulted in a Whalebone Vineyard crop of just 1t/ha. It was decided to …

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The length is super  | 17/20 | Andrew Graham – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz 2018

Author: Andrew Graham
Source: Australian Wine Review
Date: May 2023

Ultimately, this Tapanappa Whalebone Merlot Cabernet Franc 2018 is too firm and ripe to be great. But maybe, just maybe, it’s too young by half and I’m going to look like an idiot when it’s a blinder next decade. Try …

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Finishes claret firm with leafy notes  | 94 point | Andrew Caillard MW – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Merlot Cabernet Franc 2018

Author: Andrew Caillard MW
Source: The Vintage Journal
Date: May 2023

Medium deep crimson. Chinotto, plum vanilla, roasted chestnut aromas with herb garden notes. Evolved dark plum, mulberry flavours, fine loose knit grainy, hint leafy tannins well-balanced mocha roasted chestnut marzipan oak notes and well balanced fresh acidity. Finishes claret firm …

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Very good balance, density and torque  | 95 points | Andrew Caillard MW – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz 2018

Author: Andrew Caillard MW
Source: The Vintage Journal
Date: May 2023

Medium deep crimson. Lovely intense blackcurrant, blackberry, hint chinotto aromas with vanilla, marzipan, roasted chestnut notes. Grainy textured and velvety with lovely inky blackcurrant, mulberry fruits, cedary textures and underlying vanilla/ marzipan notes. Finishes slinky firm and minerally. Very good …

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A good five years would be welcome  | 18/20 | Andrew Graham – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz 2018

Author: Andrew Graham
Source: Australian Wine Review
Date: May 2023

Too much. That’s the challenge with both the latest Tapanappa Whalebone reds. This is a bit easier than the Merlot Cab, but still heavy-going, despite the obvious quality.From a warm, dry Wrattonbully vintage (Heat summation of 1799 degree days vs …

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Powerful and structure  | 92 points | Aaron Brasher – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz 2018

Author: The Real Review
Source: Aaron Brasher
Date: May 2023

Deep, dark and inky in the glass. Lifted aromas of mulberry, blackcurrant, bramble, tobacco, menthol and oak. Rich, dark fruit and oaky on the palate, there’s a lush core of brooding mulberry fruit, plum, cola and firm granular tannins. Powerful, …

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Stylish and Sophisticated | Winsor Dobbin- Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz 2018

Author: Winsor Dobbin
Source: Winsor's Choice
Date: Feb 2023

Here’s a mature wine – ready to enjoy right now – that is also a current release from Brian Croser’s excellent Tapanappa stable of wines. Fresh and juicy, but also stylish and sophisticated, it is a blend of Australia’s two …

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Croser & Bizot: a family vision in Wrattonbully

Author: Sarah Ahmed
Source: Decanter
Date: Feb 2023

Wrattonbully, in South Australia’s Limestone Coast region, is home to two powerhouse wine families from opposite sides of the world now entwined by marriage. Sarah Ahmed chats with Australian wine legend Brian Croser and his son-in-law Xavier Bizot of the
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An excellent example of Australia’s own red blend  | 93 points | James Suckling – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz 2018

Author: JamesSuckling.com
Source: James Suckling
Date: Dec 2022

Aromas of red and black currants, black cherries, rosemary stem and thyme. Medium- to full-bodied with silky, chewy tannins. Nicely defined red and black fruit on the palate. Fresh and articulate with a juicy finish. Drink or hold.

93 points

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Likely the best merlot and best “value” $90 wine around | 9.7/10 | Max Crus – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Merlot Cabernet Franc 2018

Author: Max Crus
Source: Wine Commentator
Date: Dec 2022

Bright and youthful in the glass. Complex aromas of cedar, tobacco, blackcurrant, dark cherry, bramble aA whale-sized price-tag, but given energy inflation, in time it will be less than a KW of electricity. At any time it is positively lovely …

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Tapanappa with The Vintage Journal

Author: Andrew Caillard MW
Source: The Vintage Journal
Date: Dec 2022

What these wines unequivocally showed is that the Croser vision for grand Australian wines has come to reality.
Image by Milton Wordley

The sharp-minded, deliberate and controversial Brian Croser has been a forceful and polarising advocate of Australia’s fine wine …

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Built for the long haul | 95 points | The Real Review – Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Merlot Cabernet Franc 2018

Author: Aaron Brasher
Source: The Real Review
Date: Sep 2022

Bright and youthful in the glass. Complex aromas of cedar, tobacco, blackcurrant, dark cherry, bramble and spice. Lovely, pure and precise on the palate, mid to full-bodied, long, layered and complex. Plenty of red and dark fruits, textured tannins, cedar …

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Silver Medals | Great Australian Red 2022 – 2017 Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz

Author: Great Australian Red 2022
Source: TheBuyer.net
Date: Sep 2022

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