2025 HALLIDAY WINE COMPANION AWARDS AND RECENT REVIEWS
DAVE BROOKES, WINECOMPANION.COM.AU
JUNE 2024
The shortlists for the 2025 Halliday Wine Companion Awards have been released and we are delighted to announce that Alkina has been announced as a finalist for ‘Winery of the Year’.
Alongside 5 other wineries from around Australia, including those in Tasmania, Yarra Valley and beyond, we are thrilled to have been recognised for the work that has been undertaken on the farm so far, and for the results in the glass. When we opened our doors in October 2020 we had no idea that just over 3 1/2 years later we would be in the conversation for Halliday ‘Winery of the Year.’
The Halliday judging team had the following to say about our nomination ~
"This is a play at quality of the most serious kind... This is a producer you need to get across."
The winner will be announced at the 2025 Halliday Wine Companion Awards on Wednesday, 7 August at Ormond Hall, Melbourne. Until then, we will enjoy the moment, while offering congratulations to all the excellent shortlisted wineries.
Here is a selection of recently published reviews by Dave Brookes.
POLYGON
2022 ALKINA POLYGON NO. 3 GRENACHE - 97 points
Grenache sourced from the limestone and schist soils of Polygon No. 3 on Alkina's Greenock estate; 70% whole bunches, raised in unlined concrete tulip and egg. We're seeing the 2022 Polygon wines before the 2021s are released, the Alkina team holding them back for another year's rest. As is the norm, No. 3 is nuanced and filigreed, exuding calm yet bristling with energy, with an undercurrent of minerality. It's airy red fruits and layers of spice and amaro shift constantly, revealing a chalky, fine-honed path across the palate. There is a wonderful transparency in these wines.
2022 ALKINA POLYGON NO. 5 GRENACHE - 97 points
Grenache from the fractured schist and clays of Polygon No. 5 on Alkina's Greenock estate; 70% whole bunches and raised in unlined concrete tulip and egg. Perhaps a little more in the way of bass tones off Polygon No. 5. The fruit a slightyly darker shade of red, a sense of compression to the tannin profile, again toothsome and chalky, yet demanding more attention. Spice, dried meats and dried flowering herbs, too, with a long finish with just the right amount of sinew. 806 bottles produced.
2022 ALKINA POLYGON NO. 22 GRENACHE - 97 points
Grenache from the Alkina Greenock estate off the limestone and schist soils of Polygon No. 22; 100% whole bunches and matured in unlined concrete tulip and cylinder. Beautifully transparent red plum, red cherry and cranberry fruit tones with a liminal ferrous edge and hints of charcuterie, amaro herbs, souk-like spice and pressed wildflowers. Calm with a stream-like shimmer and a seam of sapid acidity barely ruffling the surface. Chalky, tight tannins and an array of funky spice on the finish. A scant 102 bottles produced.
2022 ALKINA POLYGON NO. 1 SHIRAZ - 96 points
Shiraz sourced from the quartzite and schist soils of the 1950s-planted Polygon No. 1 on the winery's Greenock estate; 50% whole bunches and matured in unlined concrete tulip and egg. Bright magenta-splashed crimson with characters of macerated blood plum, blueberry and boysenberry with an array of Asian spice tones, crushed flowering and amaro herbs, black pepper, powdered ironstone, pressed flowers and more distant glimpses of sarsaparilla, graphite and roasting venison. Calm, deep and resonant with a graphitey, powdered rock wildness and firm-yet-fine ferruginous tannins. Looking very much 'Hermitage'-like in its structure and palate travel. 746 bottles produced.
EX-LIBRIS PROJECT
Meaning ‘from the library’ this set of wines, which we now produce in tiny quantities each year, records each individual Polygon, each vintage. Some are ultimately bottled as single polygon wines (e.g. Polygon No. 3 and No. 5) while others form parts of blends. We’re left with an amazing learning resource that we can use for educational and tasting purposes to help tell the story of soil, rocks and wines over time.
2022 ALKINA EX-LIBRIS POLYGON NO. 2 GRENACHE - 96 points
Grenache from the hard schist and windblown limestone of Polygon 2 on the Alkina estate in Greenock; 70% whole bunches and raised in unlined concrete and stainless steel. The Alkina leitmotif on full display here, fruit-pure with stunning clarity and detail throughout. Red plum, redcurrant and raspberry with hints of exotic spice, amaro, pressed wildflowers, powdered stone and dried cranberry. Tight, powdery tannins and a sapid minerality form the frame, and there is a real energy to the wine. The Ex Libris wines, produced in tiny quantities, record the individual polygons before any blending takes place, providing a crystalline snapshot of season and site.
2022 ALKINA EX-LIBRIS POLYGON NO. 4 GRENACHE - 95 points
Produced in tiny quantities, the Ex Libris wines are a pre-blending snapshot of the individual polygons; available in limited edition collector cases for those who love to geek out on soil and site. Here it's a 2022 grenache from the clay and degraded schists of Polygon 4, 100% whole bunches and raised in unlined concrete and stainless steel. Pure fruit as expected, perhaps with some darker plum and floral overtones, some dried cranberry and biltong along with amaro and light cola nuance. Slightly more compression on the palate, with tannins like the finest sedimentary silt, again the fruit and spice a little darker as the wine fades off.
2022 ALKINA EX-LIBRIS POLYGON NO. 10 SHIRAZ - 96 points
The final wine of the Ex Libris shiraz triptych, here from the limestone and schist of Polygon 10; 80% whole bunches and raised in unlined concrete and stainless steel. There is a swelling, kinetic focus to this wine. From its spiced plum, amaro and jasmine-flecked origins, it seemingly gathers momentum, minerality noted in the sides of the tongue, fine and driving, before a filigreed interplay with the fine, sandy tannins. Tension is released and the wine resolves, detailed and graceful with a chalky flourish as it fades off in a trail of spice, blue and red fruits and floral facets. 160 bottles produced.
2022 ALKINA EX-LIBRIS POLYGON NO. 11 SHIRAZ - 96 points
A shiraz sourced from the fractured schist and clays of Polygon 11 on Alkina's Greenock estate; 80% whole bunches and raised in unlined concrete and stainless steel. There's a schisty wildness to the aromas on this wine. Ferruginous and coppery tones flow like an undercurrent beneath the spice and amaro-etched satsuma plum and boysenberry fruits. The tannins are a little craggier and toothsome yet superfine and yielding – there is a minerality and a sapid luminosity to the acidity that provides both cadence and form, driving the fruit forward to a savoury, spicy endpoint. Again, a scant 160 bottles produced.
2022 ALKINA EX-LIBRIS POLYGON NO. 14 SHIRAZ - 96 points
In isolation, the Ex Libris Polygon 14 shiraz is a gorgeous wine. When tasted alongside its varietal brethren/sistren it's like a magic eye picture – you begin to get an inkling of what Alkina is getting at with its Polygon project. The differences between the soil types in each individual polygon is stark. Revelatory, even. Here it's a shiraz off the deeper clays of polygon 14, 100% whole bunches and raised in unlined concrete and stainless steel. Deadly pure, stony and composed with billowing, silty tannins, layers of exotic spice and amaro and a real sense of compression and energy. Such a great project and beautiful drinking. Only a scant 160 bottles produced.
OLD QUARTER + STRIATO
STRIATO SHIRAZ 2022 ~ 97 POINTS
The artist formerly known as 'Spice Garden' is now known as Striato Shiraz. It's 90% Polygon 10 (limestone and schist) and 10% Polygon 1 (quartzite and schist), fermented and matured in concrete, 80% whole bunches, from a smokin' Barossa vintage ... a long 'happy' vintage, according to Amelia. Purple-splashed crimson with vibrant plum, blueberry, boysenberry and cranberry fruit tones with hints of exotic spice, purple floral top notes, warm earth, licorice and panforte. No oak needed with a concrete-fermented calmness coming through in the wine, the fruit the star, gorgeously pure and composed with a schisty tannin profile and vivid limestone pulse, sapid and long. Stunning stuff.
OLD QUARTER GRENACE SHIRAZ MATARO 2022 ~ 95 POINTS
A 60%/35%/5% blend; deep, saturated crimson-purple. An entirely different play to that of its 21 sibling, emanating polished leather, black licorice and satsuma plum. It isn’t just a collection of bits and pieces, the synergy beating a big bass drum of a wine of memorable quality. 130 dozen bottles.
KIN + ART
2023 KIN SEMILLON - 93 points
A blend of two ferments, one larger ferment in concrete tulip with 10% whole berries and 10% whole bunches and a second on full skins (40% whole bunches) in stainless steel. It's then blended, full skins making up 10% of the final wine. Yellow fruited with plum, apple, citrus and a touch of pear, hints of soft, souk-like spice, clotted cream, apple and pear skin, grapefruit pith and stone. Slinky and supple with a textural flow, stony acid drive and long, lemon drop finish. Delicious, textural drinking.
KIN PINK SEMILLON 2023 ~ 93 POINTS
100% semillon gris with light skin contact, primary and malolactic fermentation in 1650L Gamba foudre before maturation in concrete on light lees. Pale orange salmon in the glass with aromas of white peach, cranberry and red apple with hints of blood orange, ruby red grapefruit, soft spice, redcurrant paste, dried citrus rind and white flowers. Sapid and delicious with a pure fruit core and a lovely, light red-fruited flow on the exit. Rosé-esque semillon gris for the win!
KIN ROSÉ 2023 ~ 94 POINTS
Grenache rosé, lightly crushed and destemmed, free-run juice drained to stainless steel with a few whole berries for colour, three months on lees. The prettiest of salmon pinks with aromas of redcurrant, raspberry, cranberry and watermelon. Hints of soft spice, peach skin, crushed stone and citrus blossom. Crisp, sapid and true with a plume of red fruits and spice and a wicked, minerally acid line.
2023 KIN GRENACHE - 94 points
There is quite a bit of buzz around for Alkina Wines. It's all about good farming and detail. It's like bonsai winemaking, three blocks of grenache on the same property, two (clay and schist) provide the flesh and power, the other, off limestone, the drive. The vinous valence here is undeniable. Spacious and filigreed with pristine red fruits, gingerbread, amaro herbs, blossom and exotic spice. Just beautifully composed with tension and transparency.
2023 KIN SHIRAZ - 93 points
Three different parcels of young- and old-vine shiraz fruit in the blend, 85% whole bunches, fermented in concrete tulips (P14 went into foudre) and matured for six months before blending. A wonderful, cohesive wine, plush with ripe plum and blackberry fruits yet savoury, layered with spice, blossom and earthen tones, tannins like powdered sand and a crystalline mineral cadence tempering the fruit. Seems very comfortable in its own skin, and it IS delicious.
WILD EARTH FIELD WHITE 2023 ~ 93 POINTS
A field blend of semillon, riesling and ugni blanc, one portion destemmed and fermented wild, on skins in a Georgian qvevri. The second ferment was in stainless steel, also on 100% skins. This lightly cloudy white wine shows captivating aromas of custard apple and citrus with hints of pithy grapefruit, pressed wildflowers, soft spice and distant tones of watered-down calvados. Slinky, kinetic and shape-shifting, it cuts a briny path, exiting textural, savoury and beguiling.
BIRDSONG SHIRAZ 2023 ~ 95 POINTS
Old-vine, certified organic and biodynamic shiraz from several plots within the Alkina estate inGreenock. Magenta-splashed crimson with aromas of blood plum and blackberry with hints of Chinese five-spice, olive tapenade, potter's clay, pepper, tobacco pouch, blueberry pie, rust and earth. Beautifully weighted with gorgeous plum tones, chalky tannins like a mist settling on the fruit, composed and graceful with a real sense of space and place. Super stuff.
NIGHT SKY GRENACHE SHIRAZ MATARO 2023 ~ 93 POINTS
A biodynamically farmed and raised red blend from from the wonderful Alkina estate in Greenock. Bruised crimson with aromas of macerated blood plum, boysenberry and blueberry, hints of delicate spice, drying amaro herbs, pressed citrus blossom, dried meats, rosehip, gingerbread, dried citrus rind and earth. Supple and lithe, it cuts a harmonious passage across the palate. Earthy, with fine tannin chew and a graceful, savoury exit.