Editors notes
Shiraz from old dry grown Barossa vineyards is blended with Viognier, complementing the strengths and complexities of these individual parcels of fruit, whilst giving the resulting wine a further dimension.
Although wonderfully aromatic, RunRig also exhibits a power and latent richness making it more akin to the hugely concentrated wines sourced from the sun drenched hill of Hermitage – the historic home of Syrah and some of the world’s most powerful and longest living wines.
Torbreck is the name of a forest near Inverness, Scotland. You’ll find more than a passing nod to the Celts in our wine naming conventions including this reference to the “RunRig” system of land distribution among Highland clansmen. Their widely dispersed holdings were managed communally rather than as any one farm…not unlike this complementary blend of Shiraz and Viognier making the sum of the parts greater than the whole.
Details
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Wine Type
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Vintage
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Variety
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Brand
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Location
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Cellaring
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Alcohol Percentage
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Oak Type
Tasting Profile
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Light (Light)Full (Full)
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Low Tannin (Low Tannin)Tannic (Tannic)
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Sweet (Sweet)Dry (Dry)
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Low Acidity (Low Acidity)High Acidity (High Acidity)
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Aroma
- Blackberry
- Blueberry
- Pepper
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Palate
- Blackberry
- Fruit Cake
- Tobacco
Food Pairings
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Pork -
Red Meat
Critic Scores & reviews
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Huon Hooke
97"Impressively deep, dark red/purple colour, with a bouquet of dried herbs, chaff, straw and black fruits. Viognier is not obvious as it is in the Descendant. It’s full-bodied and powerful, with abundant sandy tannins and some toasted-nutty oak influences. Coal-dust, graphite, earthy Western Barossa nuances are strongly evident. Dense, concentrated and compact, with a nicely complete, resolved sturcture and impressive elegance considering the hot year. Excellent wine."
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Huon Hooke
98"This is a great RunRig that will be wowing drinkers for a couple of decades to come. Very deep, dense, opaque colour, with lots of purple. It's very rich, ripe and fruit-sweet to sniff, with a powerful, lush palate filled with voluminous flavour. A colossal wine, thickly textured, with great flavour and potential. A tremendous wine that is lovely to drink now - but it's infanticide to open it just yet"
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James Suckling
97"Old-vine magic. Some even come from 1858. The decadence and dusty, antique aromas and flavors are very impressive, yet it’s not overdone. Licorice, dark berries, smoke and graphite. A blend of 98% shiraz and 2% viognier. Better in 2021."
Other vintages
Love this wine? Here's a list of other vintages we have in stock if you'd like to try them as well.
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- Variety Shiraz Blend
- Vintage 2005
- Brand Torbreck
- Cellaring 15 Plus Years
- Wine Type Red
- Alcohol Percentage 14.5% Alcohol
Torbreck RunRig Shiraz 2005-
Robert Parker's98 points
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Jeb Dunnuck98 points
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Stephen Tanzer95 points
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Vinous95 points
$449.99
Current auction
All current auctions for this wine & any different vintages.
Locations
Australia
Australia's wine industry is a thriving part of the country's economy, contributing significantly to employment, production, export, and tourism. In fact, the industry is the fourth-largest wine exporter in the world, shipping out 760 million liters of wine to countries including France, Italy, Spain, and the UK. One of the key factors contributing to Australia's success as a "New World" wine producer is the formal export and marketing of its wines through Wine Australia.
Australia's wine regions are scattered across the south and southeast, with almost every state boasting its own vineyards. Victoria, for example, is home to an impressive 21 wine regions. Some of the most famous wine regions in Australia include Margaret River, Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale, Eden Valley, Clare Valley, Hunter Valley, Yarra Valley, and local regions to New South Wales such as Cowra, Southern Highlands, and Mudgee.
Australian winemakers are known for producing a diverse range of grape varieties, with Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Pinot Noir being among the most popular. They tend to focus on producing wines that are ripe, fruit-forward, and easy to drink, using modern winemaking techniques and equipment such as stainless steel tanks and temperature-controlled fermentation.
With its bold, fruit-driven flavors and reputation for quality and diversity, Australian wine has become a popular choice for wine lovers around the world. And with such a broad range of wine regions and grape varieties, there's something for every palate to enjoy.
South Australia
If you like Australian wine, then you probably like South Australia wine. The rich reds produced there put Australia on the wine-making map of the world. With over 40% of the country's vineyards, South Australia can rightfully call itself the wine state.
Wines are produced in several regions throughout the state, though many are naturally grouped together, like Barossa and Eden Valleys, only 15 minutes apart. They include such regions as Barossa Valley, Clare Valley, Eden Valley, Coonawarra, Adelaide Hills, Kangaroo Island, Langhorne Creek, The Limestone Coast, McLaren Vale and Wrattonbully to name but a few!
Barossa Valley boasts some of the oldest vines in Australia dating back to 1843 and produces some of the world's finest Shiraz, whilst the 'terra rossa' soils of Coonawarra is most suited to producing outstanding Cabernet Sauvignons. If you're a fan of Riesling, Clare Valley is a great place to explore and for a Maritime climate not dissimilar to parts of the Italian coastline, seek out the wines from McLaren Vale.
Barossa Valley
The Barossa Valley is about an hour and a half drive to the North of Adelaide, in South Australia and is the oldest wine region in the country, founded by German settlers. The region can be credited with putting Australian wine on the world wine map, thanks to Shiraz, which thrives in the warm climate (though Hunter Valley Semillon also contributed.)
For many years traditionalist wine makers thought the grape variety was best suited to the cooler climates of the Rhone Valley and that the variety would cook in the warmth of the Australian sun. Although South Australian Shiraz is a bigger, beefier wine than its southern French counterpart Syrah, no one can deny the region's propensity to produce world-class wines.
Not only Shiraz is cultivated in Barossa Valley, with other red varieties such as Grenache, Mourvedre (Mataro) and to a lesser extent Cabernet Sauvignon. The white varieties that thrive best seem to be Semillon, Chardonnay and Rhone varietals like viognier, Marsanne and Roussane.
The Valley has many subregions which all have unique terroirs. Seppeltsfield, Marananga, Greenock are to name but a few. With a huge number of wineries in such a small area and a host of accommodation, the region is very popular for wine tourism. In the words of Master of Wine Jancis Robinson, the Barossa Valley became "Australia's quintessential wine region."
About the brand Torbreck
With a large portfolio of premium wines, Torbreck produces varietal wines, blends and single-vineyard selections of old and new vines. The classic reds of the Rhone and The Barossa Valley: Shiraz, Grenache and Mataro, are paired with the holy trinity of whites: Viognier, Marsanne and Rousanne. Torbreck Vintners has since changed hands, but the quality remands the same. With twenty years of history behind it, the winery is poised to continue producing everyday and ultra-premium wines for many years to come.
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