The Standish Wine Company - The 2020s Released Today

 Dan Standish, with his last two releases, has achieved the trifecta of power, elegance, and drive in his wines. The 2020 vintage threw up a particular challenge. It was the second drought year; even old vines start to struggle then. Yields are low, only a couple hundred kg/acre, as opposed to the standard low 1/2t/acre. The harvest was 80% below normal. As a result, the skin to pulp ratio of the grapes is high, and the risk of harvesting grapes with port-like flavours is real. Dan Standish told me a year ago, there would only be one wine. Things must have improved, because four wines will be released today. I decanted these wines 5 hours before tasting, assuming they would be big and concentrated, and tasted over two days.

Tasting these wines, two facts stand out: they have kept their specific brand profiles, but also, there is a wider quality difference, in my opinion, between the wines than in the last couple of years.

I started with the 2020 The Relic. This is the wine with the 1% Viognier component. It is hardly noticeable, much less than in the Clonakilla or the RunRig. The flavours of this wine jump out of the glass. It is red fruited, but darker on day two of tasting the wine. The wine is surprisingly fresh, but most flavour is on the front palate. It is an elegant wine, but it felt a little unsettled. This wine from the Krondorf vineyard is always first to be picked. But was this picked too early? There is a herbal character to the wine, and a bit of greenness. The tannins are not as fine and ripe as in the other wines. Maybe because there are less whole clusters in this wine? I did not warm to this wine as much, although it had drive and power and could do really well in a few years.

Score: 94/+

Next came the 2020 The Standish. The fruit is much darker; blackberry and mulberry flavours, violets, and shaved pencil. This wine has a lot of depth and purity, and is lively and energetic. Mocca flavours add to the complexity. The mouthfeel is brilliant. It is mellow, with silky tannins and a velvety finish. The wine glides down the palate in perfect harmony. It will age for a long time, but is already quite approachable.

Score: 99/+++

The 2020 The Schubert Theorem is the biggest of these wines, as expected. The colour is very dark, almost black, and the nose quite perfumed. The fruit weight is high and ripe. Blackcurrant, black liquorice, black olive, deeply layered - you get the picture. This is a broad shouldered, masculine wine with a huge structure, very tannic. It left my mouth quite dry. Still, the wine is not overripe and quite balanced.

Score: 96/++

The 2020 Lamella from the Hutton Farm vineyard at Eden Valley is very elegant. It is mostly blue fruited, very smooth and balanced. It is perhaps the antithesis to The Schubert Theorem in the context of Dan Standish's winemaking. The higher level of acidity is noticeable, but it gets caught by the firm tannin structure on the long finish. 

Score: 97/+++ 

Overall, this is another great set of Standish wines. If you are looking for more linear wines with drive, you go for The Relic or The Standish. If you enjoy a big, fat mouthfeel, you opt for The Schubert Theorem. If you enjoy more acidity, the Lamella is your wine.