The Loechel Eden Valley Shiraz is sourced from a single vineyard at the Southern tip of the Eden Valley township. It was planted over half a century ago by the Loechel family to granitic loam, at 440 metres altitude.
The vineyard is planted on a steep Easterly aspect with high drainage and low yields, resulting in concentrated fruit and rich, complex wines. The vineyard is picked in three individual components which are kept separate throughout vinification. The wines spend between 18 and 22 months in 50% new and second use French oak barriques. One third of the vineyard’s fruit is retained to produce the Loechel Shiraz which is determined at blending prior to bottling.
“The Loechel shows generous dark ripe fruits of blackberry, cherry liqueur and cassis which is supported by dark chocolate and mocha tones and subtle herbs and spice. The palate reveals pronounced dark fruits, underscored by smoky, savoury and meaty notes: olives and charcuterie with subtle reductive funk. The palate is medium to full-bodied, yet maintains a mouth-staining inkiness to provide a long and satisfying finish with a persistent orange-rind like acid backbone.”
DAVE POWELL
The 2019 Neldner Road Loechel Shiraz is a masterfully crafted, single-vineyard red wine that marks an exciting evolution for legendary winemaker Dave Powell under his rebranded estate. Sourced from half-century-old vines planted on a steep, well-drained easterly slope in the southern reaches of the Eden Valley township, this low-yielding release beautifully balances intense fruit concentration with the signature freshness of its high-altitude granitic terroir.
- Aromas: Wafts of intense blackberry, fresh dark plum, and cassis infused with violets, followed by underlying layers of smoked vanillin oak, dark chocolate, and spicy black pepper.
- Palate: Medium to full-bodied with a mouth-staining inkiness, packed with ripe blueberry, liquorice, and dark plum flavors underscored by savoury charcuterie and black olive notes.
- Style: Generous, plush, and deeply concentrated, matching Dave Powell's signature Barossa-like power and lavish texture with a persistent, orange-rind-like acid backbone.
- Winemaking: Picked in three separate components, vinified individually, and matured for up to 22 months in a combination of 50% new and second-use French oak barriques.
- Cellaring: Exhibiting a remarkable core of dark fruit and firm, blocky structure today, it has the optimal depth and balance to reward patient cellaring through 2030.
- Food Pairing: Pairs magnificently with wood-fired prime rib, slow-braised wild boar shank, seared venison steaks, or rich mushroom and black truffle ragù.
This exceptional Loechel Shiraz represents a bold new chapter for Dave Powell, capturing the distinct elegance of a premium, elevated Eden Valley site while retaining the unapologetic depth, structural power, and winemaking signature that established his global reputation.
Powell & Son
Powell & Son may be a relatively new label, but it is the creation of a man with one of the most formidable reputations in Australian wine. Dave Powell is the founder of Torbreck — the Barossa juggernaut that took the wine world by storm in the 1990s — and he brings that same depth of knowledge and conviction to everything he does.
That inspiration is reflected in the varieties Powell & Son work with: Shiraz, Grenache and Mataro for the reds, and Roussanne, Marsanne and Eden Valley Riesling for the whites — the classic Rhône palette transplanted into two of Australia's most celebrated wine regions, and interpreted with the kind of quiet mastery that only comes from a lifetime in the vines.
