Thistledown’s This Charming Man Old Vine Grenache 2025

Written By Campbell Mattinson
Bottle of Thistledown This Charming Man Old Vine Grenache.

Thistledown This Charming Man Old Vine Grenache 2025
AU$105, 13.5% alcohol, screwcap, McLaren Vale.

Grown on the Smart vineyard at Clarendon in McLaren Vale.

A warmer year has produced a more robust – and more tannic – release this year but there’s still plenty of bright, perfumed, red-berried fruit flavour and most importantly, genuine emphasis through the finish. In fact as much as I loved the 2024 release, I’m equally as positive on this 2025. The spread through the finish here is seriously good, the release of red licorice notes seductive and more, and the impression of quality shatteringly clear.

96 points – Campbell Mattinson.

 
Campbell Mattinson

Campbell Mattinson has been an independent journalist, wine critic and photographer for forty years. He founded The Winefront, is a former chief editor of the Halliday Wine Companion (and former editor of Halliday magazine), and is the only Australian to have won the Australian Wine Communicator of the Year Award more than once. He is 100% independent, and tastes between 5,000 and 10,000 wines each year, blind and in comparative brackets as often as is practicable.

More about Campbell Mattinson

Mattinson is also the founder of the Mattinson Photography business.

https://www.campbellmattinson.com
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