JM 1ST APPROACH

... Sweet cherries and raspberries with a hint of tart cranberry on the back palate. But it’s not all about fruit; dried oregano, earth and tea leaf add to the savoury profile that eventually defines the wine. It’s a spicy minx too. All that nimble energy leads to fine, slightly chewy tannin. Lots of evolution in the space of twenty-four hours – if you can make it last that long. Very Good – Excellent Wine Will Eat Itself

.. Wonderfully generous palate is ripe and slippery but not sweet. Not hard to like a juicy, ripe, no-nonsense Vale Shiraz like this. 17.5/91 points Australian Wine Review

... meat, spice and dark fruits on the nose ... and soft silky tannins with a long finish. Polished and fascinating.  93 points James Suckling

...enticing rather than overbearing and it lingers beautifully on the finish. A fine wine for the price .... Winingpom

... Has an earthy goodness about it too. Benefits from a quick slosh in the decanter. Excellent red wine. Rated : 92 Points Winefront

There’s concentration plus on the finish but it all feels quite restrained making for one of Australia’s best Chardonnay experiences. It’s an absolute belter." 95+ points Patrick Haddock, Wining Pom,
Wine Will Eat Itself 94+ points - "The 2012 is a winner. It’s precise and incisive. Purity of fruit, adroit use of oak, a wonderfully mineral backbone and real persistence.
... Shaw and Smith M3 chardonnay has come a long way over the past ten years and is now a far finer example of the variety... Grapefruit and peach essence, flint and funk. Toasty oak. Pear and milk through the finish. Quality is very high here. Had me salivating. Rated : 95+ Points Winefront

....... Very clean, with fine-grained, powdery tannins. A precision wine, which drinks superbly now and will age very well. The extra age before release is a bonus." Rating: 97 points. Huon Hooke,

 ... tannins and fruit, working seamlessly together; the length of flavour is nothing short of staggering, and while a joy to drink as a young wine, patient cellaring will be well rewarded." Rating: 96 points. James Halliday

The wine displays fresh green tinges on a pale straw colour. The nose exhibits aromas of fresh cut pear and honey dew melon with some zesty citric notes. There are no overt woody or buttery aromas with the primary fruit characters expressed with clarity and definition. The palate is fresh and lively with clean crisp acidity complementing the vibrant fruity flavours. The palate has very good extension and ends clean and bright. This is a restrained style of Australian Chardonnay and highlights how far we have come with this style of wine over the last decade.