Australia

“The 2019 Polygon 1 Shiraz is spicy, taut and mineral-driven. This has shape and slender form, with pepper spice and all the things, black tea, graphite, etc. There are also notes of lamb fat and cloves as well as dark chocolate, mulberries and licorice. It is savory and exotic and exciting. Although, it does take some getting used to because it is quite different from other Barossa Shirazes—it is pure and febrile rather than big and tannic. This was fermented in concrete and finished off in a custom 420-liter barrel. The fruit for this wine is from a tiny 0.4-hectare polygon and is part of the Old Quarter of the vineyard. The vineyard was split into four distinct parcels, and in three of those parcels, vines grow on heavily fractured micaceous schist. One small area of 0.097 hectares in the middle lacks this schist content and is excluded from the ferment. 46 cases made and 50 magnums. Drink: 2022-2032. 93 points”

Erin Larkin, Wine Advocate (09/22)

“The Polygon 5 is grown on a schist-dominant site, and the thread of tannin between the 2018 and 2019 shows a lineage of assertive, focused tannins. At no point, however, do they intrude on or impede the flow of the fruit. This 2019 Polygon 5 Grenache is supple, buoyant and spicy. It steps outside of the expected Grenache territory for the Barossa and treads a dangerously elegant and fine line. Thrilling. It has savory red fruits: salted redcurrants, pomegranate, raspberry. Wild. Layered. Earthy. Big, yes. Drink: 2022-2036. 96+ points”

Erin Larkin, Wine Advocate (07/22)

“This 2020 Spice Garden Shiraz, like the other premium Alkina Shirazes will certainly split the crowd. Some will be titillated by its purity and febrile nature. Others will pine for the density and volume that Barossa Shiraz can deliver. It’s important to know what you’re walking into before you do it. I’m in the former camp. This features succulent, chewy fruit grown on limestone (90% of the blend) and schist (10% of the blend); the neighboring clay-based Polygon was excluded as it was thought to overpower the detail in Polygons 10 and 11. This is exceptional. It is supple, pliable and exciting, with layers of exotic spice, layers of fat, clove, star anise, red licorice and mulberry. Balanced. It’s good for the Barossa, this wine. It shows the great thing about the Barossa that made it famous: concentration. But it does so in an elegant, medium-bodied way. The splay of firm Pinot-esque tannin through the finish is the highlight. 44 cases made. Drink: 2022-2037. 95 points”

Erin Larkin, Wine Advocate (09/22)