The Matchoss vineyard, where fruit this 2021 Fool on the Hill Grenache is sourced, is high up in the Eden Valley where the old bush vines really struggle in their quest for productive survival. The wine itself is supple and imbued with smithereen tannins: fine, chalky and omnipresent. This has all the slink and shape you could want from Grenache but harnessed. Thistledown is part of the new breed of the very best Grenache producers in the country. The tannins are screwed down into the buoyant fruit, providing balance, grounding and harmony. You can probably tell from this note that I love this wine; the tannins are the highlight.

95 points, Wine Advocate (July 2022)

A drift away from the spiritual turf of the Vale, this nevertheless has all the stamps of class, tension and poised fruit that one expects from this address. Some Australian scrubby menthol notes meander across a densely packed palate of clove, pickled cherry, fecund strawberry, tamarind and white pepper. A but drying on the finish, a churlish regret. This should show very well with time in the bottle.

93 points, Wine Companion (February 2022)