Talk about a juxtaposition! On the one hand, this black jube-laden Barossa Valley red packs a heck of a dark fruit punch. Yet the clever inclusion of a little whole bunches and a whole lotta Jason Schwarz cleverness has produced a modern-yet-classic Mataro of instant charm and swagger.

Jason Schwarz was doomed to be a winemaker from his childhood. Ensconced in the vineyards of South Australia, in particular, Bethany in the Barossa Valley, his parents had provided a suitable environment from the very beginning. After finishing his winemaking degree, he set off to see the world and completed vintages in France, the USA and Argentina before returning home and starting his own label in 2001. Starting off with only two barrels of Barossa Shiraz in the first year, he followed this with a similar amount of Grenache the next. The Grenache is still made every year and is a fixture in his offerings. With great fruit sources from the beginning and a heap of guidance from some key Barossa winemaking and grape-growing icons, the wines of Schwarz deliberately show off the quality of the fruit with a minimum of intervention.