Simon Cowham – viticulturist (left) and Corey Ryan – Winemaker (right)

Co-owners of Sons of Eden—Winemaker, Corey Ryan and Viticulturist, Simon Cowham—are two switched-on Barossa wine aficionados with a combined history in this region of 50 years.

Corey Ryan, besides his 25 years in the Barossa, also lays claim to being crowned New Zealand Winemaker of the Year in 2007. He was a finalist as Australian Winemaker of the Year in 2016. He points to his tenure as winemaker for Henschke as a defining moment in his career. Whilst at Sons of Eden we tasted a stunning line up of fine wine fashioned under his focused guidance.

Simon Cowham toured their vineyards showing what steps he takes to remain sustainably farmed with healthy vines and little interference with nature. Vines were pristine—some fruit-laden compared to others in the tough 2020 vintage. Simon was Barossa Winemaker of the Year (2013) awarded by Barons of the Barossa and was viticulturist with Yalumba in the mid-1990s.

The following wines were tasted recently at Sons of Eden winery in Eden Valley, Australia. The first wine reviewed is in the upcoming April 4, 2020 Vintages Release. Hopefully, many more will be picked up and offered through the Ontario agent, Classics Catalogue or Vintages.

• The following 2018 Sons of Eden ‘Freya’ Riesling was 72% sourced from two cool-climate Eden Valley vineyards of forty-year and older vines with the remaining sourced from a vineyard of twenty-year-old vines in the even cooler ‘High Eden’ sub region with the average yield 2.3 tonnes/acre of early-morning, hand-harvested fruit. It was then whole-bunch and berry pressed, settled cold and racked clear then cool fermented for up to three weeks before finishing quite dry then held on its lees for an additional three weeks before bottling. No wonder it’s so incredibly interesting and absolutely delicious.

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Sons of Eden ‘Freya’ Riesling 2018
Eden Valley, South Australia $19.95 (12652) 12.5% alcohol
You can drink this value-packed riesling now or up to fifteen years from now after careful cellaring. Aromas of lime and white flower notes on the nose provide segue to a delightful wash of glorious tang expressed as Key lime pie, hints of passionfruit and grilled pineapple adorned with lemon curd. It’s creamy smooth with good weight, excellent balance and lengthy crisp, clean and refreshing finish and aftertaste. Pour alongside steamed mussels or pan-seared or grilled calamari. (Vic Harradine)

• The following wine was named ‘Kennedy’ to pay homage to a family of growers responsible for planting some of the vineyards that are now producing the incredible old fruit still being harvested for wines like the following 2017 Sons of Eden ‘Kennedy’ Grenache Shiraz Mourvèdre. Special homage has been paid to one family member, Leo ‘Joe’ Kennedy, who was a charismatic grower and for years nurtured the fruit that makes up the Light Pass sub-region of grenache sourced for this wine. A likeness of him appears on the label.

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Sons of Eden ‘Kennedy’ Grenache Shiraz Mourvèdre 2017
Barossa Valley, South Australia $24.95 (558692) 14.5% alcohol
This 48% grenache/32% shiraz/20% mourvèdre red blend leaps from the glass with aromas of violets and black plum intertwined with savory herb notes. A surge of bramble berry and dark Bing cherry mingling with pie cherry and passionfruit wash over the palate as pure ambrosia. This is medium-plus bodied with generous mouthfeel, balanced and beautiful with a lengthy finish adorned with sprigs of savory herbs. It’s all framed with excellent acidity and underpinned by soft, ripe, fine-grained tannin. Give it a go now after a two-hour aeration/decant or cellar short term. Pour with grilled rack of lamb or slow-cooked lamb shoulder. (Vic Harradine)

• All grape varieties for the following 2018 Sons of Eden ‘Kennedy’ Grenache Shiraz Mourvèdre were hand-picked, fermented separately and underwent a warm fermentation of just under 30 degrees C. Fruit from grenache and mourvèdre vines were macerated on skins for 10 days to three weeks then pressed into seasoned 300L oak hogsheads and 500L puncheons then matured in barrel for 16 months, no racking, then clarified naturally, blended and bottled. All fruit for this wine was sourced in the Barossa Valley from vines over twenty-years-old to vines over 100-years-old with overall average yields approximately 2/tonnes per acre.

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Sons of Eden ‘Kennedy’ Grenache Shiraz Mourvèdre 2018
Barossa Valley, South Australia $24.95 (558692) 14.5% alcohol
This 46% grenache/36% shiraz/18% mourvèdre red blend begins with a quiet nose of fruit aromas—black plum and cherry—decorated with mixed spice and savoury herbs. A spectacular surge of cassis and kirsch liqueur intertwined with ripe mulberry and tangy black currant coat the palate persisting through the lingering, balanced-on-a-pin finish. It’s medium-plus bodied with fleshy texture, persistent purity of fruit and value-packed. Pour with osso buco, grilled gourmet sausage or cassoulet. (Vic Harradine)

• The following 2018 Sons of Eden ‘Marschall’ Shiraz is named as a tribute to a legendary vigneron who pioneered the beginnings of the Barossa Valley and lives on through these gnarled old vines like the ones that form the backbone of this wine. David Marschall cultivated excellent vineyards, was an accomplished martial arts devotee, an actor and a demolition expert. A likeness of David features prominently on the front label.

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Sons of Eden ‘Marschall’ Shiraz 2018
Barossa Valley, South Australia $24.95 14.5% alcohol
The price-quality balance here tips wildly in your favour. Perfumed aromas of floral notes, sprigs of savoury herbs and dark berry fruit leap from the glass. A lively surge of racy tang—red currant and cranberry—and sweet, ripe fruit—black currant and blueberry—coalesce on the palate, balanced and beautiful. This is medium weight with good mouthfeel, silky tannin and oodles of charm. It’s good to go now and for the next five years. A two-hour aeration/decant will enhance your imbibing experience. (Vic Harradine)

• The following 2017 Sons of Eden ‘Zephyrus’ Shiraz is well named. Zephyrus is the Greek God of the west wind. Most days around ‘happy hour’—5:00 pm or so—the vignerons of Barossa welcome its occurrence as it is a cool and cooling wind that allows the region its wide diurnal range in temperature that assists in giving finished wine a delightfully balanced flavour of ripe fruit—from the warm days—and excellent tang and acidity—from the cool nights. The 16 different parcels of shiraz in the following wine all had extended skin contact, from 10% to 60% whole bunch clusters, then approx. 3-weeks fermentation before being pressed into 45% new and 55% seasoned French oak 300 L hogsheads and matured 15 months before being bottled… not fined or filtered.

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Sons of Eden ‘Zephyrus’ Shiraz 2017
Barossa Valley, South Australia $45.00 14.5% alcohol
This is balanced on a pin offering persistent purity of ripe fruit and plenty of lip-smacking tang. Aromas of dried savoury herbs, dark berry fruit and peppery notes abound on the nose of this gorgeous blend from 16 individual parcels of shiraz sourced from 55% Barossa Valley and 45% Eden Valley. A medium-plus bodied, lively textured surge blankets the palate with oodles of tang from flavours of passionfruit and pie cherry intertwined with ripe, sweet blueberry and juicy, savoury-infused black plum. It finishes lengthy, balanced, structured and simply delicious. It was fabulous to taste and required strict discipline to spit. Aerate/decant three hours before serving. (Vic Harradine)

• The Romulus and Remus theme—mythical twin brothers, initially abandoned then raised by a she-wolf and eventually one brother kills the other in a fit of rage—mirrors the distinctiveness of where the grapes are sourced for these two wines. One is sourced from Barossa Valley, the other from Eden Valley. The following 2017 Sons of Eden ‘Romulus – Old Vine’ Shiraz requires 100% Barossa Valley fruit sourced from sustainably farmed shiraz vines over 50-years-old. The average yield is less than two tonnes per acre.

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Sons of Eden ‘Romulus – Old Vine’ Shiraz 2017
Barossa Valley, South Australia $70.00 14.5% alcohol
Grilled savoury herbs, dark cherry/berry fruit and black pepper aromas precede a glorious balanced and flavourful rip current of flavour over the palate. It’s medium-full bodied with satin-smooth mouthfeel and palate flavours of ripe bramble berry jam and cassis along with juicy red raspberry and ripe blueberry joined by savory-infused black plum and a replay of aromas with a black pepper note and hint of cherry. There’s deft balance, persistent purity of fruit, a lengthy finish and plenty of charm and delectable flavour from cork pop to last drop. Pour now after a two-hour aeration/decant. (Vic Harradine)

• The following 2017 Sons of Eden ‘Remus – Old Vine’ Shiraz requires Eden Valley fruit sourced from sustainably farmed shiraz vines over 50-years-old. The following wine was sourced from three plots—two plots over 60-years-old and one plot over 80-years-old; the average yield was approximately two tonnes per acre. Hand-picked shiraz for the following wine was destemmed and crushed into 1.5 tonne open-top fermenters with select fermenters receiving up to 25% whole-bunch clusters added. It was hand-plunged daily then matured 18 months, not racked, in 300L French oak hogsheads, 45% new.

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Sons of Eden ‘Remus – Old Vine’ Shiraz 2017
Eden Valley, South Australia $70.00 14.5% alcohol
Inky/dark, almost opaque in the glass, aromas of violets, savoury herbs, black licorice and dark cherry waft easily from the glass after a gentle swirl. A broad swath of stunningly delicious flavours blanket the palate with juicy black plum and ripe black Bing cherry adorned with fennel, cracked pepper and hints of blueberry persisting through the monumentally long finish and aftertaste. This showcases firm structure, ripe tannin underpinning, excellent balance and lip-smacking tang. This has life ahead, pop corks now—after a three-hour aeration/decant—to 2027. This is superb shiraz deserving kudos and serious consideration for a multiple purchase. (Vic Harradine)