MMAD Vineyard Shiraz 2024

97 POINTS - Marcus Ellis, Halliday Wine Companion, 25 May 2026
"This has been the surprise packet of the MMAD wines, with it duelling for position with the grenache and chenin blanc. Some whole bunch, concrete and oak vat for ferment, then raised in older, larger oak, as usual. Saint-Joseph resonances. Evocatively aromatic and spicily so. Smoky, darkly mineral. Blackberry pastille, tapenade, lavender, grilled game meat, crème de violette, iodine and nori, star anise, ground clove, allspice, green and black peppercorns, malted barley, freshly ground coffee, powdery rust. Like the grenache, the nose holds such intrigue, demands attention. That’s matched by the silky flow of the old-vine fruit on the palate and the superfine natural tannin. This is blisteringly good, again. 97+"

97 POINTS - Shanteh Wale, Wine Pilot, 17 July 2026
"A briar of black fruit and savoury, creeping herbs—bilberry, dark cherry and pepperberry layered with notes of kombu, coastal rosemary and wild, untamed greens. There’s an earthiness here too: turned soil and dark, stony sand grounding the aromatic lift. It feels like an afternoon bush walk—banksia brushing past, scrub at your ankles—so vivid is its sense of place and transportive quality. Powder-fine tannins settle gently through the mid-palate, while olive tapenade, nigella seed and a touch of twiggy oak lend structure and savoury detail, supporting the core of blackberry fruit. This is full flavoured, detailed with its own distinctive character but sits in a medium to full body for its freshness and brightness. You won’t forget this experience any time soon. Try this with Lamb chops and old school mint sauce and reinvent the marriage of the two. Old school dish and very new school modern wine."

Aroma:
Perfumed and delicate with layers on layers of blue fruits.

Palate:
While fruit is at the fore, an unexpected lightness on the palate is delicately framed by ripe, resolved tannins, subtle spice and a graphite edge. As pretty as ever.

Region notes:

MMAD Vineyard has Grenache planted in 1939, Shiraz planted in 1941 and Chenin Blanc from 1964. The vineyard has the fine Maslin sands found in Blewitt Springs, and is exposed to the fresh sea breezes from the south-west. Below the sand is a layer of ironstone pebbles, and this combination of sand, ironstone, and cooling winds gives both perfume and structure to the wines.

Winemakers comments:
The old vines of Blewitt Springs are a precious resource, and an important part of Australia’s viticultural history. In early 2021, MMAD Vineyard was purchased by a quartet made up of winemakers Martin Shaw and Adam Wadewitz, and Masters of Wine Michael Hill-Smith and David LeMire. MMAD takes its name from their first initials. The MMAD wines aim to reflect the unique terroir of Blewitt Springs and the rare old vines that thrive there.

Vintage notes:
A third consecutive wet winter and early spring left MMAD Vineyard with an ideal full soil moisture profile. December rain (85mm) carried this through the season. A mild back half of the season was followed by short bursts of heat in late February and mid March which brought the reds home.

Vinification:
Hand-picked and sent to French oak fermenters, with a small portion to stainless steel. Ferments include around 70% whole bunches. All basket pressed to old puncheons for 10–11 months, then racked and bottled unfiltered in February 2025.