World Wine – Vinous Brilliant ruby. Intense, spice-accented, ripe black and blue fruits, violets and smoky, mineral aromas build in the glass. The sweet, expansive palate reveals concentrated blueberry and boysenberry flavors that tighten up slowly on the back half. The finish clings with excellent tenacity, providing a framework for the wine's exuberant dark fruit.

James Suckling – Gorgeous, bright fruit with raspberries, black cherries and lavender with some schist. It’s medium-bodied with very polished and integrated tannins that go on and on. Drink or hold.

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate – The origin of everything here and the first single-vineyard red, 2018 Finca Dofí excels in 2018. Those 10 hectares planted 20 years ago in the village of Gratallops are mostly Garnacha, but the wine also has some 8% Cariñena and 2% white grapes. They all fermented after being destemmed and lightly crushed in oak vats with indigenous yeasts. The wine matured in large oak barrels (bocoyes and foudres) for 16 months. This is the refined version of the Gratallops (the vineyard is in the village!) but with an extra degree in depth and complexity, especially nuance and elegance, showcasing the captivating finesse and harmony of the vintage, which is a little in the style of the 2016 with more energy. I see that these 2018s are quite transparent and show the style of the zone, the iron soils, the dusty roads and the warmth of the soils; it's round and lush, spherical but with a spike of freshness. The élevage has been polished so as to render it almost invisible. This is drinkable now, and I think it's also going to age nicely in bottle and drink nicely throughout its life.

The Wine Front – "It may sport a little too much stalky and spicy whole bunchy for some, but I find it very firm and pleasing. Strawberry and raspberry, plenty of white pepper and rosy perfume. It’s medium-bodied, crisp and vibrant, emery board tannin, spicy and dusty red fruits, a little aniseed, very ‘minerally’ with a long and somewhat bony and sappy finish of impeccable length. It’s a wine of very distinct personality, and while it may polarize, I reckon it’s superb. It’s kind of like a whole bunch Pinot Noir in its delivery. 95+" - Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)

James Halliday – "By far the best single-vineyard iteration of this range. Clarendon. Ferrous. Bloodstone, damson plum, crushed mint, raspberry coulis and dried thyme. Such vivacity, drive and length, positioned between a compact framework of tannins extracted with such exactitude and confidence. Compression and release manifest as brilliance." - Ned Goodwin MW (Halliday)

Huon Hooke – "Medium-deep red with a good tint of purple and a discreet bouquet of subtle spices and berry fruits, a patina of fresh-turned earth and black fruits, licorice and various spices, full-bodied in the mouth with ample tannins adding terrific structure and length. An impressively deep, concentrated and harmonious grenache with the structure to age long-term."

James Halliday – "Sourced from the old bush vine block on the Wait Vineyard, in Blewitt Springs. Arguably the most filigreed and complex of these single-vineyard iterations by virtue of its brood and carnal complexities: blood orange seeped with kirsch, woodsmoke and clove. Like the finest Sicilian-accented negroni. Straddles pinosity and nebbiolo-inspired boniness all at once, while laying the structural lattice to define a long, thrilling ride to the finish. Yet there is the mescal and dill-pickle note suggesting a bit more ripeness may be not such a bad idea." - Ned Goodwin MW (Halliday)

Huon Hooke – "Medium-deep and bright red-purple hue; the bouquet is sweetly spiced raspberry to dark cherry with hints of cola and Campari, utterly charming, while the palate is medium bodied at best and succulently smooth and supple in texture. Fruit sweet and delicious. An outstanding grenache of the modern style. Previous comments apply, but it deserves a higher rating." - Huon Hooke

The Wine Front – "Vibrant ruby and purple in the glass. Blueberry, bouquet garni and iodine aromatics. The mouth fills with bright blue and red berries, lifting acidity keeps it fresh and lively but there’s ample savoury undertones to bring depth and character. The tannins build into the finish and provide length and persistence." - Stuart Knox (The Wine Front)

James Halliday – "A bright, clear colour. Offers a tantalising bouquet, at once floral with red cherry blossom and earthy/savoury nuances. The palate is supple and very, very long, the finish is fresh and mouth-watering." - James Halliday (Halliday Wine Companion)

The Wine Front – Grown mostly on the Rayner vineyard in McLaren Vale. 43 year old grenache vines; 65 year old shiraz vines; mataro from nearby. Some whole bunches, mostly with the mataro. All old oak. Bottled unfined/unfiltered. Another fantastic release from Bondar. Just the right mix of structure, flavour and interest. This is a savoury, sinewy wine first and foremost though flavours of graphite, woodsmoke, black cherry and fennel mean that there’s plenty else going on. Those strains of spicy tannin though; those fistfuls of smoked twigs and spices; they really set the scene. It twirls and twists through the mouth like it’s mapping out genes. A light-but-exquisite red wine. 93 points, Campbell Mattinson, winefront.com.au

Wine Spectator – A ripe, lush style, with warm and inviting plum, fig and boysenberry confiture notes gliding through. Offers a beautiful polished feel, with suave anise and black tea flavors filling in on the finish while the fruit just sails through. Relies primarily on fruit, and you can't blame it for that. Drink now through 2030.

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate – La Nerthe's 2015 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee des Cadettes is a blend of approximately one-third each Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre. Eighty percent of the wine spent a year in new oak barrels, but much of that has been absorbed into the wine, and I see that my notes don't make reference to overt oak descriptors. Scents of raspberry and spice lead the way, followed by a firm, full-bodied palate. The tannins are present from front to back, but they're ripe and silky, lingering elegantly on the finish.

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate – A gentle mélange of ripe cherries, dusty earth and dried spices mingle on the nose of the 2018 Chateauneuf du Pape. A blend of approximately 60% Grenache, 30% Syrah, 8.5% Mourvèdre and 1.5% other permitted varieties, it's full-bodied, showing some silky tannins on the cocoa-tinged finish.

World Wine –

Antonio Galloni/Vinous – ‘Brilliant ruby-red. Spice-accented dark berry, cherry pit and succulent flowers on the perfumed nose. Fleshy and broad in the mouth but lively as well, offering sappy black raspberry and bitter cherry flavors that become sweeter with air. Closes gently tannic, with very good energy and persistence, leaving a spicecake note behind. Drink 2018- 2022.’

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate – ‘A négoce blend of 80% Grenache and 20% Syrah, the 2017 Cotes du Rhone Reserve Mont Redon combines black cherries and black olives in a supple, medium to full-bodied wine that's ideal for quaffing over the next several years. Drink 2019-2023.’ 87 points, Joe Czerwinski, The Wine Advocate, August 2019.

James Halliday – It took me a while to reach a conclusion on this wine. It's big and ripe and concentrated with a mass of cedar, spice, dried red fruit, tobacco and black plum. And there's big grainy tannins that coat the mouth from the middle back, but under it all is a core of succulent fruit, waiting. Patience the key here. - 2020 Vintage Review

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate – Rose petal and tea leaves add nuance to the oodles of blueberries and cherries that form this wine's core, while the dense, rich palate carries those flavors on a velvety blanket of ripe tannins. - 2020 Vintage Review