Cullum emphasises terroir, believing the best wines are those that give the drinker a true expression of origin. In the vineyard, he’s committed to sustainable and organic viticulture practices to maintain vine and vineyard health, ultimately to produce the highest quality grapes. Yields are low which maintains quality and flavour – and boy are these wines are packed full of flavour! In the winery, Callum runs things with minimal intervention, using 100% whole bunch ferments, wild ferments, and maturation on gross lees. All this combined brings us some wonderfully aromatic and fresh Barossa Wines.
Get around Agricola, for drinking or collecting, and enjoy some of the most amazing expressions coming out of the Barossa right now!
Agricola Flaxman Valley Shiraz 2023 $85
Here we go with Naimanya Original Vineyard, Burley ‘Hill’ and Home 100-plus-year-old vines. Seems to be some firepower in the resources here.
The standout feature here is an unnerving sense of purity. Overall, so fresh, so fine, vibrant fruit, a swish of ultra-fine and quality, feathery tannins, red fruits, cinnamon toast spiciness, dark amaro characters, dried rose petals, faint game meat and chai tea – what the?!. Exotic, unbelievably complex, superb drinkability, vitality, length, intensity and levity. It’s so good. So so good. Any prestige wine anywhere will have to put up its dukes. It’s all about balance, persistence, layers of character and still an inimitable sense of the cooler places of a warm place that it comes from, let alone the intensity of quality old vines. It meets you with full eye contact and a firm handshake. It’s wildly delicious. Far out. 97 + points Mike Bennie - The Wine Front
Agricola Ebenezer Shiraz 2023 $85
Well, we are back in Hoffmann-Dallwitz vineyard here with 1888 through 1912 plantings sourced. These are meshed to Hoffmann 1951-planted Dimchurch vines.
This is potent and rich, a kind of rustic charm to it all, yet levity and relaxed feel too. Strength exists in dusty tannins that wrap woody spices, sweet spices, toasty notes and a lavish array of ripe raspberry, dark plum, currants and choc-cherry. Lush, yet tension too. There’s a pleasing thickness here yet a lift as well. It’s really spice-laden is the message, I just feel that needs repeating, and geez, overall, it’s really interesting and good in that regard. Individual. Alongside, texture does plush, somewhat chewy, a dusty and clove-spiked profile lingering. A textural haven! Sheesh, so much on here. A feast! It’s great. 95 points Mike Bennie - The Wine Front
Agricola K’ Sands Shiraz 2023 $85
All from Asbroek’s Vineyard with plots times two, one of 1864 vines and one of 50-plus -year-old vines. As Callum explains, “I was asked by a business far larger than mine to remove the local place name and indigenous word ‘Kalimna’, from continuing labels of my bottlings from the Asbroek’s 1860’s shiraz plantings on Kalimna Road West. This wine is now named K’ Sands and is still a bottling of the Asbroek’s treasured vines behind their family home.” Erhem. The exotic nature of this wine is so, so compelling. I have never encountered something like this from the Barossa, and indeed, a shiraz marching to the beat of its own drum and then some. Swoon territory.
It’s intensely laden with game meat, wildly exotic, sweet spices and dried rose petals, green pepper, Thai spice, white raspberry, tart cherry and a bevy of clove/anise. The palate echoes a similar series of traits, medium weight, silty and grippy, laced with dried green herbal elements, pumice stone, crushed rock, slightly grunty but sticking to a medium weight profile with maximum savouriness. It seems to mesh the personalities of pinot noir, nebbiolo and nerello mascalese with heartier shiraz, the latter of course the star but, geez, this is such a wildly compelling and incredibly distinct and beautiful wine. They should scrub the word Kalimna off the big company wines and take a lesson from this one. 97 points Mike Bennie - The Wine Front
Agricola DWxHV Shiraz 2023 $85
Geez, what a treat it is to work through the quartet of new release wines from Callum Powell of Agricola. Top of the pops. All day. This is a blend of Hoffmann Dallwitz vineyard sourcing with plantings dating from 1996 to 1888 and fruit from the Angas family’s 1961 Hutton Vale plot. What a combo!
This is quite potent but still manages a sense of freshness and prettiness. Scents of ripe plum, ginger biscuit, cumin and cardamom in a big way, bloody meat, black tea, new leather and anise. Evocative. The palate shows off rich, dense fruit characters, intense black plum, cola, more gingery notes, that similar riff of curry spices, strong black tea feel to the fine but firm tannin profile and some bergamot and bay leaf to finish. Feels quite Italianate in a way – an almost robust sangiovese-esque profile, and good for it. But still, the beating heart of Barossa is is writ large. Tremendous. 95 Points Mike Bennie - The Wine Front.
