95/100 James Suckling
95/100 The Wine Front (2016 Vintage)
95/100 The Wine Front (2014 Vintage)
95/100 Jeremy Oliver (2014 Vintage)
97/100 James Halliday (2014 vintage)
95/100 Jeremy Oliver (2013 Vintage)
95/100 Jeremy Oliver (2011 Vintage)
95/100 Huon Hooke (2007 Vintage)
94/100 Jeremy Oliver (2010 Vintage)
93/100 Jeremy Oliver (2012 Vintage)
93/100 Jeremy Oliver (2009 Vintage)
93/100 Jeremy Oliver (2008 Vintage)
93/100 Wine Enthusiast (2013 Vintage)
93/100 The Wine Front (2013 Vintage)
91/100 Wine Enthusiast (2009 Vintage)
90/100 Wine Spectator (2009 Vintage)
90/100 Wine & Spirits Magazine (2009 Vintage)

Bronze - International Wine Challenge (2009 Vintage)

James Halliday 5 Star Winery
James Halliday Top 100 Winery 2017

James Suckling "A phenomenal wine that is the fruit of a small plot dating back to 1853. This has a very soulful array of red-plum and mulberry aromas and flavors and a sweeping wave of tannin, which, even though very discreetly, powers a very long and smooth finish."

The Winemaker "The Old Garden vineyard is the oldest Mourvèdre vineyard in the world planted in 1853. Dry-grown, original existing vines pre-Phylloxera. Eight rows of this rare and unique planting remain to this day at Rowland Flat and produce winemaker Dean Hewitson’s much-lauded single-vineyard table wine bearing the Old Garden name. The vineyard has been hand-tended and dry-farmed by Friedrich Koch and his direct descendants across three centuries."

Andy Saxon "Aged for 18 months in new French oak this full-bodied red wine offers lifted forest berry, black cherry and orange peel aromas. The palate shows dense, lush blackberries and prunes with hints of cigar box, violets and black pepper. Fine, seamlessly integrated tannins."

James Halliday "The 2-acre Old Garden Vineyard was planted in 1853 and is recognised as the world's oldest Mourvedre vineyard, producing only 5 tonnes, 25% whole bunches included in the ferment, matured in new French oak. Great colour for a '14 wine, still vivid and clear; super-intense, super-juicy; the quality and character take hold immediately you take the first sip, the bouquet a deceptively serene introduction. It is one of the most seductively savoury (or vice versa) wines of this medium-bodied style I can remember." (2014 vintage)

Australian Wine Companion "Established in 1998 Hewitson winery is situated in the heart of the Barossa Valley on the historic Seppeltsfield Road and boasts some of the oldest vines in the world. Hewitson fruit is sourced from historic, dry-grown vineyards in the Barossa Valley and also from single-site vineyards in Eden Valley, McLaren Vale and the Adelaide Hills."

Frederick Wildman "Dean Hewitson founded his eponymous winery in 1998. He is a highly respected Australian winemaker ...Hewitson has worked at wineries in Australia, France, Italy and Oregon. Hewitson then moved to the U.S. where he earned a Masters from UC-Davis. On his return home, Dean brought a wealth of knowledge, practical experience and a driving passion to produce wines not only from Barossa Valley but also from the McLaren Vale and the Adelaide Hills regions.

Hewitson fundamentally believes great wines are the expression of the soils they are grown in and the season in which they are grown. With his longstanding focus on terroir—specific terroir plots in fact—many of Hewitson’s wines are single vineyard. He sources grapes from not only his own vineyards but also from long-standing grower contracts including a few sourced from some of the oldest living, still productive vines on plots that date back to the mid-19th century and are pre-phylloxera. His ‘Old Garden’ Mourvèdre is a single-vineyard wine, whose vines were planted in 1853 in Barossa Valley and are reputed to be the oldest Mourvèdre vines in the world. Hewitson’s ‘Miss Harry’ is sourced from a Grenache vineyard planted in 1880, also thought to be the oldest Grenache in existence.

Due to Hewitson’s education and experience in Australia, California and France, Hewitson wines combine Old-World traditions with New-World fruit purity. And while he clearly excels with Rhône Valley grape varieties, Hewitson also produces award-winning Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc. A practitioner in solar energy, water recycling and encouraging natural biodiversity, Hewitson produces wines in an environmentally sustainable fashion."

James Halliday "Dean Hewitson was a winemaker at Petaluma [one of Australia's leading wineries] for 10 years, during which time he managed to do three vintages in France and one in Oregon as well as undertaking his Masters at the University of California, Davis. It is hardly surprising that the wines are immaculately made from a technical viewpoint. Dean sources 30-year-old Riesling from the Eden Valley and 70-year-old shiraz from McLaren Vale; he also makes a Barossa Valley Mourvedre from vines planted in 1853 at Rowland Flat, and Barossa Valley Shiraz and Grenache from 60-year-old vines at Tanunda."

The Barossa Valley is an extremely important wine-producing region within the Barossa zone of South Australia, particularly associated with powerful red wines from the red wine grape variety Shiraz. A prestigious and internationally renowned region, it is not only home to some of the oldest vineyards and wineries in Australia but produces some of its most recognizable and sought-after brands. A striking feature of the Barossa Valley's wine landscape is the presence of very old vines, proudly showcased on many wine labels and during vineyard tours.

Mourvedre is a black-skinned variety that has been grown in vineyards all around the western Mediterranean for centuries. Thought to have originated in Spain, it is now grown extensively throughout the Iberian Peninsula, southern France, California and South Australia. Single-variety Mourvedre or Monastrell wines are not particularly common, but as the curiosity of the average wine consumer increases, so more and more producers are experimenting with making wines from 100 per cent Mourvedre.