Standish Lamella Shiraz 2022

"The 2022 release as a whole is the most balanced, most exciting release of Standish Shiraz to date. It has confirmed that Standish is one of the greatest, if not the greatest  Shiraz producer in this country."  Erin Larkin

Dan Standish has the Barossa Valley running through his veins. A 6th Generation native, Dan created his Standish label in 1999 whilst still working at Torbreck. Today his wines are some of the most highly sought-after in the world and are critically acclaimed both here in Australia and internationally.

"It's savoury and beautiful, balanced and very exciting. The discussion around perfection is a funny one because I've had so many wines over my life that I thought 'Wow, that's pretty amazing', but very few have gone 'I don't know if I want anything else from this wine, from this place, from this producer, from this grape'. It's really only happened a handful of times. I think that this has everything that we want from a great wine."  Erin Larkin

The Lamella is an imperious and beguiling wine, the pinnacle of Eden Valley Shiraz. A wine to rival Hensche's Hill of Grace and Mt Edelstone. Fruit is sourced from the Angas family vineyard, Hutton Vale Farm. This vineyard is right in the middle of Mt Edelstone and Hill of Grace vineyards as the crow flies. Cuttings came from the Mt Edelstone vineyard and were planted in the early 1960s. 

Erin Larkin reviews the 2022 Standish Lamella Shiraz (11:51 into the video)

Expert reviews

"The 2022 Lamella Shiraz has a little secret held within, and it's one not noted on the label. Within this cuvée, is just two barrels of fruit from the Stonegarden Vineyard, the original Lamella Vineyard, before the current Huttonvale Farm. Stonegarden was planted in the Eden Valley in the middle 1800s and is a historic site. The wine rises with Chinotto and blood orange, black tea and pressed flowers. It is, in its quiet way, kaleidoscopic and mottled ... it does not stay still, it gently moves across the palate like sunlight over the course of a day. The long finish speaks of raspberry pip and sandalwood, pomegranate, Boscobel rose and even the softest suggestion of scraped vanilla pod. If you have the benefit of time, I would recommend tasting this on both day one and day two. As I see it, day two has all of the complexity of day one, with the added seamlessness and silk that only time can bring. This is the most alluring Lamella I can recall ever tasting on release, despite many previous releases' flirtation with perfection. 100% whole bunch. 14.9% alcohol, sealed under natural cork and wax. Drink 2024-2052"  Erin Larkin, Wine Advocate - 100 points

"The '22 release sees the Lamella fruit source shift to the ancient vines of the Stonegarden vineyard, planted in 1885, just out of Springton in the Eden Valley and a source for some of the region's top cuvées. It is a jaw-droppingly beautiful wine. Taut and finely structured despite the seemingly endless depth of its pure core of plum, black cherry and blue fruits. Hints of raspberry pip, sage, vanilla bean, sandalwood, liminal Averna tones, dried citrus rind, charcuterie, cold black tea, licorice root and crushed rock. Its fruit is sleek and polished, its line graceful, with an underlying sense of latent power, tannins uber-fine and compact, and there's a quartz-like clarity to its acidity as it propels the wine onwards. Give this one a good decant and pop a few bottles away. Drink: 2024-2046."  Dave Brookes, Halliday Wine Companion - 98 points and Special Value Wine  ★

"Deep crimson. Elderberry, dark plum, liquorice aromas with dark chocolate, ginger notes. Richly concentrated, dark plum, blackberry pastille, elderberry, grippy/slinky/graphite tannins and beautifully integrated mocha, ginger oak. Chocolaty dry finish with a flow of dark berry pastille fruits. Absolutely top-notch, Drink now–034."  Andrew Caillard MW, The Vintage Journal - 98 points (Tasted 2024)

"Pop and pour: Raspberry jam, cherry, new leather and mint, sage leaf and spice. Plenty of grip and tannin, but also kind of overt in sweet blue and red fruit, just feels a little thinned by brandied alcohol, but does have impressive length, lavish tannin, and a whole lot of stuff packed in. 94+ points

Open for two days: Raspberry conserve and rosehip jelly, mint, vanilla and sweet spice. Lavish mouth-coating sandy/grainy tannin, something of a ferrous quality too, shows some warmth but has such concentration and flavour that the impact of that is reduced. Sizzled sage and spicy sausage, and orange rind bitterness on a finish of excellent length. It’s a wine that probably needs at least a decade in the cellar. 96 points."  Gary Walsh, The Wine Front - 96 points

Awards

Special Value Wine – Halliday Wine Companion  ★ 

Lamella

100% Shiraz. 100% whole bunch. Sourced from the Angas family vineyard, Hutton Vale Farm, Eden Valley. Cuttings came from the Mt Edelstone vineyard and were planted in the early 1960s. The Angas family originally owned the Mt Edelstone vineyard – they sold it to the Henschke family. This vineyard is right in the middle of Mt Edelstone and Hill of Grace vineyards as the crow flies. Dan exclusively sources from the northern part of the vineyard.

About the Winery

Dan Standish has the Barossa Valley running through his veins. A 6th Generation native, Dan created his Standish label in 1999 whilst still working at Torbreck. Today his wines are some of the most highly sought-after in the world and are critically acclaimed both here in Australia and internationally.

Standish Wine Company is a strikingly beautiful winery located in the Barossa Valley. The winery and vineyards are owned by Dan and Nicole Standish. Dan was first introduced to the art of pruning grape vines by his grandfather at the young age of six in their ancestral vineyard. He founded The Standish Wine Company in 1999 after securing a section of his family vineyard in the Barossa Valley. The same ancient plants that Dan carefully hand pruned are now used to produce his old vine shiraz, fittingly titled 'The Relic'.

Dan and Nicole work side by side at their modern, cavernous winery. The large stone and brick building is framed by lavender bushes and grand old vines. They purchased the site in 2013 a decade after it was built by French-managed company The Colonial Estate. The structure is like something straight out of France's Rhone Valley or Spain's Rioja, both parts of the world that Dan has worked in. He also made wine in California's Napa and Sonoma Valleys, before working for Torbreck. 

The estate produces a number of examples of Barossa Shiraz, including 'The Relic', 'The Standish', The Schubert Theorem and Lamella. Each wine is produced with the utmost attention to detail, blending traditional techniques with modern technology.