Utopos is a project by Kym Teusner (Teusner wines) and Neil Panuja, making distinctly Barossan wines out of their vineyard. It is named ‘Utopos’ in reference to the root word of Utopia, indicating just how special this vineyard is. The Shiraz is a blend or 90% Shiraz and 10% Mararo (from vines planted between 1974 and 2000), aged in 40% new French oak hogsheads for 24 months. The result is an incredibly concentrated, deep wine, luscious and smooth on the palate, with brilliant balance and length.
With 6% mataro, destemmed with some whole berries and aged in French oak hogsheads (40% new) for 2 years. Deep red purple in the glass, with a perfumed cascade of satsuma plum and macerated blackberry characters, underscored by hints of baking spice, licorice, dark chocolate, vanilla and cedar. The balance is impeccable, with great fruit purity and detail throughout its length; the classy, cedary cut of French oak perhaps a little more noticeable on the palate. Deep, resonant and long, with über-ripe tannins and a sense of brightness to its form.
96 points, Wine Companion (January 2022)
Yes it’s heavy with smoky-vanillin oak and it’s a bit boozy too but the fruit is sweet and rich, the tannin is extremely well managed and the finish is sustained. In short what this wine does is deliver a mountain of flavour in a well-controlled manner. Plum, graphite, chocolate, liquorice and clove flavours flood the mouth in seriously impressive fashion. The smell of this. The intensity. Give it time to mellow, sure, but this delivers a lot.
93+ points, The Wine Front (February 2022)
A very rich and ripe nose of mulberries, blackberries, dark chocolate, baking spices and plums, as well as currants and cedar. The palate has a very rich and plush feel with mouth-filling, ripe plum and blackberry flavors. Spiced pudding-like finish. Drink over the next seven years.
93 points, JamesSuckling.com (July 2021)
Colonel William Light, the South Australian colony’s Surveyor-General, named the Barossa in 1837 after the site of an English victory over the French in the Spanish Peninsular War. In the mid-1800’s Silesian and English immigrants settled in the area. The Barossa itself comprises two distinct sub-regions: Eden Valley and the warmer Barossa Valley floor at 270m.The Barossa Valley enjoys a warm Mediterranean climate characterised by hot dry summers and relatively low rainfall. Cool sea breezes from the Gulf of St Vincent modify the temperature, however hot northerly winds can occasionally dominate creating considerable vine stress. Many older established vineyards are dry-grown, but supplementary irrigation is also extensively used. The valley is comprised of rich brown soils and alluvial sands. A long history of uninterrupted viticulture in the area means the Barossa valley is home to Australia’s largest concentration of old-vine Shiraz, Grenache and Mourvedre with many over 100 years old. Although most famous for Shiraz, the Barossa can also produce fragrant and deliciously fruity Grenache blends and beautifully rich, chocolatey Cabernet Sauvignons.
