96/100 - ...the vintage was low-yielding and very dry, the wines are of excellent quality... There's a black pepper character on the nose; the fruit has black cherries and is saturated and dense. There is profound cohesion and intensity, gravelly ferrous tannin and a burly, gnarly character in the mouth. Upon opening, this is a wine kept in tannic restraints. Part of this has to do with the vintage, part to do with the Stelvin closure (of which I am an avid proponent). Giving it some air prior to serving, or ensuring that you are using a Pinot Noir glass, will amplify the experience. This is a distinct wine that speaks very much of the place it is from. At this point in history, it is a single voice from a northeast-facing hill in Frankland River... The Swinney bush vines are dry famed, so the dry conditions of 2019 leading into 2020 did limit production. To put this into context: the fruit (small berries on loose bunches) was picked a month earlier than "usual" at 2.5 tons per hectare. 'We try to target five to six tons per hectare for Farvie, meaning 2020 produced less than half the normal yield," says winemaker, Rob Mann. The fruit is selected vine by vine. The wine is matured in 600-liter French oak demi-muids.

This year saw the launch of the 2020 Swinney Farvie Syrah (£99.50) and 2020 Swinney Farvie Grenache (£99.50), and they are both near-perfect wines, scoring identical 19.5/20 in my notes.