Glaetzer Amon-Ra Barossa Shiraz 2021

"Ben Glaetzer is a serious talent who has exploded on the wine scene with a brilliant array of wines."  Robert Parker

Glaetzer Amon-Ra is a benchmark Barossa Valley shiraz made by master winemaker Ben Glaetzer. Fruit is sourced from exceptional old vines in the famed Ebenezer sub-region in the northern part of the Barossa Valley. Vine age varies from 35 years to over 130 years of age. Amon-Ra is Glaetzer's flagship wine and in addition to being a shiraz of monumental proportions, it displays a freshness and purity of fruit that are the hallmarks of Ben Glaetzer's wines.

"Ben Glaetzer unashamedly turns the volume up on Amon-Ra. The winemaker likes a full-blooded Barossa Shiraz and knows how to deliver it. No apologies. This is a traditional Barossa heartland kind of Shiraz, almost impenetrable, but with life and vitality. Vibrant, ripe blackberry, bramble, damson plum with heady fruitcake spice notes, licorice block, leather and earth sit well entrenched at the heart of this wine, full-bodied and mouth-filling. You know it’s crying out for more time in bottle. Be assured, it can deliver more."  Jeni Port

Fermented in 1 and 2 tonne open fermenters, hand plunged 3 times daily. Matured for 16 months in 100% new oak hogshead barrels (95% French and 5% American) and matured on lees to maintain fruit profile and animation. Bottled unfiltered to ensure minimal intervention with the wine’s natural characteristics

"Deep purple upon release, but will evolve to a rich, dark garnet red over time in bottle. On the nose, dark cherry and blackberry notes are offset by hints of black pepper and a well stocked spice rack. The palate is rich and enveloping and balanced on a razor’s edge between power and finesse. Multiple dark fruit notes saturate the palate, enhanced with graceful spice and herb notes. It will age for many years to come."  Glaetzer Wines

Expert reviews

"A wine that illustrates how traditional Barossa can be expressed in modern hands. It’s a Shiraz from 50 to 130 year old Ebenezer vines, revealing power and poise. Traditional open fermentation was adopted with hand plunging three times a day. Deep plum and minerally characters merge on the nose. A slightly cedary factor lifts with a dense dark chocolate and spicy plum. Chalky fine tannins perfectly integrated combine to take a concentrated powerful palate to an effortlessly long finish. Drink by 2048."  Ray Jordan, Winepilot - 97 points

"The 2021 Amon-Ra Shiraz is supple and polished and bright, red and purple fruits mingle on the mid-palate while the fine tannins swarm around the perimeter. In the context of Hoffmann fruit wines tasted here today, the Amon-Ra comes off as bright and light; and while I am aware that this is his style, it's fascinating to see it in this lineup. It's juicy and chewy and bright. The tannins are a highlight. 15% alcohol, sealed under cork. Drink from 2024-2041."  Erin Larkin, Wine Advocate - 96 points

"Shiraz sourced from vines between 50 to 130 years of age in the renowned northern Barossa subregion of Ebenezer; 16 months in new French and American oak. A wine of impact and purity. Beautiful ripe black plum, cassis and black cherry fruits with hints of cedar, baking spices, dark chocolate, licorice, nutmeg, espresso, earth and graphite. Power and harmony writ large with cascading tannin, lacy acidity and great depth and concentration ... I feel it needs one of those big, old Batman-style 'KAPOW!!' boxes for emphasis. It's a cracker. Drink by: 2043."  Dave Brookes, Halliday Wine Companion - 96 points

"Ben Glaetzer unashamedly turns the volume up on Amon-Ra. The winemaker likes a full-blooded Barossa Shiraz and knows how to deliver it. No apologies. In the 2021 vintage, he has seasonal conditions – mild, dry with a long Indian summer thrown in – that fit his modus operandi and Amon-Ra style. Alcohol runs at 15%, the dense, dark purple colour is stain-worthy and high tone spice and woodsy oak play a prominent – and it must be stressed, positive – role. This is a traditional Barossa heartland kind of Shiraz, almost impenetrable, but with life and vitality. Vibrant, ripe blackberry, bramble, damson plum with heady fruitcake spice notes, licorice block, leather and earth sit well entrenched at the heart of this wine, full-bodied and mouth-filling. Cedary, woodsy oak performs a big embrace of fruit, ably assisted by generous tannins. You know it’s crying out for more time in bottle. Be assured, it can deliver more. Why unfiltered? "To ensure minimal intervention with the wine’s natural characteristics," is the answer from the winemaker. That is, nothing is removed by filtration. It remains tantalisingly whole. Drink: 2023-2040."  Jeni Port, Wine Pilot – 95 points

About Ben Glaetzer

"When I look at the winemaker behind some of my favourite Australian wines, the name Ben Glaetzer seems to come up frequently. He is a serious talent who has exploded on the wine scene with a brilliant array of wines."  Robert Parker

The irrepressible Ben Glaetzer is the driving force behind both Glaetzer, Heartland and Mitolo Wines. Glaetzer Wines, the sole family company, was set up by his father Colin in 1995 and makes red wines from ancient vines in the Barossa Valley. Heartland Wines, which makes less expensive wines from Langhorne Creek and Limestone Coast, was set up by Ben and fellow winemaker Scott Collett in the late 1990s. Then there’s Mitolo Wines, which focuses on McLaren Vale, which was set up in 2000 by Ben and horticulturalist Frank Mitolo.

Ben's early experience in the wine industry was working as a cellarhand at Barossa Valley Estates during school and university holidays. He originally had aspirations to be a pediatric surgeon – "I wanted to have an impact, but I didn’t want to fix sick people all the time." But the smells and sounds of the winery at vintage drew him back. "I’d been working vintages for 10 or 12 years. I came from a pretty ordinary medical lecture and walked into the winery and thought, it doesn’t get better than this." So he switched to studying winemaking at Roseworthy, Adelaide University’s agricultural college.

After graduation, Ben worked in the Hunter Valley at Tyrrell's and travelled extensively through the world’s wine regions. In 1998, he returned to the Barossa and joined his father’s business. The family’s day-to-day business is its high volume winemaking operation at the Glaetzer winery, which is able to crush 10,000 tons of grapes each vintage.  30–40% of the crush is Glaetzer/Heartland/Mitolo, the three projects that Ben puts his name to, and the balance is contract work on behalf of numerous clients. In the 2005 vintage, a staggering 1,300 different wines were made in their winery from almost 30 different grape varieties. This was a training ground for a young winemaker like no other.  

Ben took over Glaetzer in 2002. Bruce Tyrrell says, "He was always going to have his own business and label. In the winery, he had great attention to detail, and a top palate."

That palate, and his exposure to the wines of the world, has turned him away from the traditional Barossa style of his father. "I took over the family company in 2002, and the style change has been marked. The 1980s saw a burst of Chardonnays that had undergone malolactic fermentation, which were rich, full and died. People have moved on since then and in the Barossa they are now making more global wines. Winemakers have been travelling more, and are eating better food and tasting more imported wines," says Ben.

Oak use has been the biggest change. He describes the old style as, "a definitive Australian style, derived from secondary characteristics: toasty oak and vanilla. People are now being more selective about what they are using. It doesn’t matter whether it is American or French." In the winery oak is used as a structural component, not as a flavouring component.

When it comes to wine style, the Glaetzer hallmark is purity of fruit. "I'm looking for animated fruit. Wines have to stay alive. I want the fruit to smell fresh, alive and animated." His ability to blend traditional winemaking techniques with a modern flair is reflected in the style of all of his wines.

Over the years, Ben's chalked up some prestigious winemaking honours, including Behind the Label New World Winemaker of the Year 2006, Qantas Young Winemaker of the Year 2004 and Robert M. Parker Jnr’s Wine Personality of the Year 2005.

About the winery

The Glaetzer family settled in Nuriootpa in the Barossa Valley in 1888 after emigrating from Brandenburg, Germany. They were some of the earliest recorded viticulturalists in the Barossa Valley. Over a century later, in 1995, winemaking patriarch Colin Glaetzer established Glaetzer Wines.

Colin completed an agriculture degree in 1968 and an oenology degree in 1970 and then gained winemaking experience overseas and in many of Australia's noted wine regions. In 1985 he moved to the Barossa Valley to run Barossa Valley Estate, where he created the now revered E & E Black Pepper Shiraz and the Ebenezer range of wines. After 30 years of winemaking experience, the establishment of Glaetzer Wines allowed him to produce boutique super premium wines under a family owned label.

Colin's son, Ben, worked as a cellarhand at Barossa Valley Estates during school and university holidays. He had aspirations to be a pediatric surgeon – "I wanted to have an impact, but I didn’t want to fix sick people all the time." But the smells and sounds of the winery at vintage drew him back. "I’d been working vintages for 10 or 12 years. I came from a pretty ordinary medical lecture and walked into the winery and thought, it doesn’t get better than this." So he switched to studying winemaking at Roseworthy, Adelaide University’s agricultural college.

After graduation, Ben worked in the Hunter Valley at Tyrrell's and travelled extensively through the world’s wine regions. In 1998, he returned to the Barossa and joined his father’s business. The family’s day-to-day business is its high volume winemaking operation at the Glaetzer winery, which is able to crush 10,000 tons of grapes each vintage.  30–40% of the crush is Glaetzer/Heartland/Mitolo, the three projects that Ben puts his name to, and the balance is contract work on behalf of numerous clients. 

Ben took over winemaking at Glaetzer in 2002. The Glaetzer mission is to focus on the production of small-volume, super premium wines from the small Ebenezer sub-region in the northern part of the Barossa Valley. Fruit is sourced from a loyal group of third- and fourth-generation Barossa grape growers who own around 260 hectares of vineyards, so this is as terroir-specific as winemaking gets. Vine age varies from 35 years to over 130 years of age.

The older vineyards are divided into blocks, each with different measured parameters. But despite the degree of science behind it, he has little truck with winemakers who depend only on laboratory analysis for making decisions. "I admit I don’t want to see the analysis; I just want to taste. There’s a window of perhaps four days between physiologically un-ripe, and over-cooked fruit in the Barossa, but I pick on ripeness of tannins and taste, not analysing the ripeness of the fruit and sugars."

Glaetzer produce four wines in their portfolio; the Wallace Shiraz Grenache, Bishop Shiraz, Anaperenna Shiraz Cabernet and the flagship Amon-Ra Shiraz. In 2016, they also released a very small quantity of their first 'perfect' wine, The Eye of Ra Shiraz, made from the finest parcel of fruit off the Ebenezer vineyard.