Faber Vineyard – 2025 Benchmark Tasting

Barry Weinman: 20th July 2025

John Griffiths, Faber’s larger than life winemaker/proprietor hosts what must surely be some of the most enjoyable and best value events held locally each year.

Of all the events, the Benchmark Tasting is the one that lovers of Australian shiraz should put into their calendar.

This is an opportunity to taste twelve high quality shiraz (blinded to the order they are served in) from a cross section of Australian wine regions, complemented by a delicious and substantial four course meal, all washed down with some gems from the Faber cellar.

The highlight for me, however, is the opportunity to compare and contrast a variety of different styles of shiraz which, this year, included eleven distinct regions (the Barossa was the only region with two wines). All wines were from the 2022 vintage.

What stood out for me, was the consistently high quality of the wines, regardless of style. Whilst the cooler region wines such as Swinney and Yarra Yering were a whisker ahead for me, the consensus from the audience was that the warmer region wines were the ones that were most appreciated, with Faber, Standish and Torbreck topping the votes at the end of the day.

And in a very strong line-up it was great to see that the Faber Reserve Shiraz 2022 was the equal crowd favourite!

A special note should be made on Griffith’s passion and bravery to hold this event. It must be nerve-racking to sit and wait whilst people compare and contrast the wines, and pass judgement.

Fortunately, Faber wines are very good indeed. 😊

The line up (in order tasted).

Forest Hill – Block 9 – Shiraz – 2022. This was the first wine of the tasting, and a great way to start. Lovely ripe fruit is pristine, perfumed and fragrant. Spice, mouthfeel and gently chewy texture add to the package on a palate that has truly amazing length. But it is oh so closed and tight right now. Yet this remains silky for the entire length of the very long palate, with the flavours lingering for some time. This is very age-worthy, with extraordinarily fine tannins and oak. 95-96pts. A bargain at $70.

Thomas Kiss – “Kiss” – Shiraz – 2022. More structured and savoury. But still with a core of spectacularly ripe fruit. This is something of a chameleon wine. Whilst it is taut, restrained and fine, there is a core of powerful, dense fruit that runs the length of the palate. The finish has excellent length and persistence and is, for all intents and purposes, seamless. White pepper and minerality build on a finish that is beautifully textured. A wonderful wine which is still available for $80. 97pts.

Torbreck – The Gask – Shiraz – 2022. More in the chocolate spectrum, but with air, the ripe satsuma plum fruit really blossoms. With the first sip I thought” Oh wow, this is just spectacular!” The palate is flooded with supple, fleshy plum-like fruit supported by a frame of gossamer fine tannins and oak. Seamless, silky and absolutely brilliant drinking. But surely it will be even better in a decade. Spent 18 months in one year old oak. 15% alc – 96pts – $90.

By Farr – Shriaz – 2022. Much cooler, with souring plum/cherry fruit that takes on a raspberry hue with air. The palate is fleshy and juicy, with really fine tannins and oak. But it is the acidity that carries this wine along its focused palate journey. Not green, but so, so cool climate in structure. With air, this takes on some smoky, almost bacon fat notes, along with pepper and spice. This is a style that may polarise. 94pts – $110.

Giaconda – Shiraz – 2022. Wow. What a wine. Fragrant, pretty, ripe blueberry, succulent and juicy, yet with a degree of restraint and real gravitas on the finish. The seriousness comes from the way the acidity, tannins and oak all meld seamlessly with the fruit to provide a lattice of supports that serve to highlight the beauty of the wine, without impeding the flow of the fruit in any way. Great length and balance. the souring cherry acidity on the close is a real highlight. 13.8% alc – 97pts – $125.

Seppelt – St Peters – Shiraz – 2022. Another cracking wine, but here, the fruit is just a touch more restrained, with the structural components starring on the palate. This equates to an irresistible texture on a virtually seamless palate. Wonderful length and persistence of flavours and textures. Slightly cooler in character, there is more red berry fruit than plum here. So, so balanced and age-worthy. Amazing wine. 14.5% alc – 96pts – $80.

Swinney – Farvie – Shiraz – 2022. Smells somewhat cooler, with hints of mint and even a touch of eucalypt. This flows onto a palate that is lithe, supple and medium-bodied, but also structured, powerful and very, very fine. Superb, the sense of presence this has in the mouth is something to behold. Length is a feature, with supple savoury notes adding greatly. Oak is for all intents and purposes, invisible, but a key contributor to the wine’s structure. An iron fist in a velvet glove? Yes. A remarkable wine. 14 months in seasoned oak, partial whole-bunch. 13.5% alc – 98pts – $180.

Glaetzer – Amon Ra – Shiraz – 2022. This is a bit of beast straight up. Powerful fruit, firm tannins, complexity-building oak. Remarkably, the palate is virtually seamless, yet the fruit is completely blanketed by the structural components. Immensely age-worthy, this is a traditional style of great merit. But it needs time and patience to show its best. And will score higher points when it does. 16 months in 100% new oak (95% French hogshead). Vine age ranges from 50 – 130 years old. 15% alc – 95+pts – $100.

Wendouree – Shiraz – 2022. This is an interesting wine as here, the peppery minerality is the key feature up front. The ripe fruit is there, but it is sitting sleepily in the corner, while the very fine oak, tannins and acidity dance on the palate. As this sits in the glass, the fruit starts to open up and give clues to its potential. The finish is seamless and silky, in a very structured way. Going back to this over time, it was clearly even better than I first thought: the balance between the fruit, winemaking and acid is truly superb. One of my favourite wines of the tasting. 96-97pts – $85.

Faber – Reserve – Shiraz – 2022. There is more plum here, and lashings of creamy oak which has a seductive vanillin character. The fruit is ripe, super ripe, befitting a prestige shiraz from the Swan Valley, with the acidity being the hero here, keeping the fruit fresh and adding drive to the finish. The palate is very long with great persistence, and the fruit remains focused throughout the palate transition. After 20 minutes in the glass, this really started to shine and was clearly the audience’s pick for the day. A classic, warm region shiraz, this spent 22 months in new oak hogsheads prior to bottling. 95pts – $100 (a bargain at $80 for club members via the website).

Yarra Yering – No 2 – Shiraz – 2022. Everything is taken down a notch here, and all the better for it. The lighter toned, more structured fruit has been perfectly matched to supple, texturing oak and feathery tannins. Ripe? Yes, but a cooler expression of ripe shiraz. The structural notes make their presence felt on the finish, gradually corralling in the fruit which, when combined with the acidity, confers an almost nervous energy to the wine. Exciting, exhilarating, enthralling, this is a stunning wine. In the glass, both blue and red fruit characters build and are quite floral and perfumed. Pepper? Yes, but this is more about minerality than spice. 96% shiraz, with a splash of marsanne, mataro and viognier. Aged in French oak barriques for 15 months (25% new). 13.5% alc – 97 – 98pts – $135.

Standish – The Standish – 2022. This is a very big wine, and the crowd loved it. Dense, viscous, chocolate, coffee, menthol and a supple resinous note. There are layers upon layers of fruit cascading across the palate. With so much intensity, this is the essence of ripe shiraz. Incredible length and depth, every fruit character you want in a warm region shiraz. For fans of big shiraz, this is as good it gets. The oak a feature, but is perfectly matched to the fruit. The tannins are impactful and structuring. The wine does come with a caveat however: for me, I can’t think when I would ever drink this. It is just too much for me. 96pts.

Footnote: For a different take on the tasting, you can read Alan Wilkerson’s excellent review here.