Mount Pleasant Rare Superstars

James Suckling 99 points. "This has a very complex and alluring array of rich red plums, blackberries, dark cherries and blueberries. Entrancing depth and purity with some stony, graphite-like notes, too. The palate has a striking core of intense, fresh dark-berry and plum flavors and some orange peel and dark chocolate to close. Drink or hold. Screw cap." Planted in 1880 by Charles King, the 'Old Hill' or 'O.H' vineyard has produced some of the Hunter Valley's greatest red wines. Legendary winemaker Maurice O'Shea first made wine from the 'Old Hill' in the 1920's & 1930's. These early...

This iconic semillon is made from block LO-07 of the Lovedale Vineyard, planted on a sandy, ancient seabed in '46 by Maurice O'Shea. Like all 2018s, the wine is boldly flavoured and generous in proportion, with a pillowy mid-palate bursting with fresh pear, lime curd and a touch of smoked almond. As the wine will only expand with time, I would enjoy it now with its lovely mix of richness and freshness. 95 points. Toni Paterson Published 23 July 2024.

Inspired by the first visit of a reigning monarch to Australia in 1954, today Mount Pleasant Elizabeth is the embodiment of the synergy achieved by combining the noble grape variety Semillon and the Hunter Valley. Having been placed in the cellars for extended bottle age, this small parcel of Semillon now enjoys the benefits gained from patience. The nose opens with fragrant floral notes of citrus blossom, followed by zesty ripe lime and mandarin aromas. The wine is fine, tight and pure. Reflective of the aromas the wine tastes of fresh lemon and limes. The texture is light, bright and pure with a fresh line of acidity along the palate....

James Halliday 97 points, Top 20 whites of 2023. Bright, but deep, straw-green; from Block LO-07. The wine immediately presses the pleasure button. While it will continue to develop for years, the balance of youthful freshness and the honeyed toast is impeccable now. The price is totally justified. 97 points | $90 | Screwcap | 11% alc. | Drink to 2032 | The late Maurice O'Shea planted the Lovedale vineyard in 1946 with incredible foresight, recognising that the unique structure of the land and the surrounding environment would deliver the tightness and acidity for world-class Semillon. This wine provides exceptional drinking now or can...

Hand picked, racked to used oak for natural 10-day fermentation, the barrels topped and stirred for eight months. I'm convinced fiano has an exceptional future in many parts of Australia, what with its inbuilt texture, structure and savoury citrus flavours. This is a fine example of the variety. 93 points. James Halliday Published 02 August 2023.   Region: Hunter Valley, NSW Winemaker: Adrian Sparks   Growing Conditions A beautiful growing season, with dry weather during winter followed by gentle spring rains rejuvenating the vineyards. Healthy vines with a perfect balance between canopy and crop and an abundance of water made...

Sourced exclusively from the Lovedale vineyard, Elizabeth has been quintessential Hunter Valley Semillon since the early days.  No frills in the vinification: cool fermented for 14 days in stainless-steel tanks with cultivated yeast. Spent two months on lees before clarification and bottling. The fruit profile is the expected lime/lemon flavours, not so much the slinky acidity which makes it very much a now or later proposition – an outright bargain. 95 points. James Halliday Published 14 February 2023.   This wine was formerly bottled under the "Elizabeth" label. That  is now used for cellar aged...

The fruit is crushed to the press, settled and racked to tank for a cold ferment and lees ageing. Scented white flowers and lemony freshness with a cleansing palate. The fruit has good integrity, and the mid-palate has pleasing texture and breadth, plus soft, rounded edges. It is a harmonious, balanced drink with a beautiful limey core. Excellent value. 95 points. Toni Paterson Published 23 May 2024

First made in 1953 and thought to be named in honour of Philip Mountbatten, Duke of Edinburgh. Always a major part of the annual Mount Pleasant production (largely contract-grown), and for some years of modest quality and deep discounts. The quantity made these days is far less, most surprising its estate origins and its quality – a classic medium-bodied, finely balanced wine proudly flying the flag for Mount Pleasant and Hunter Valley shiraz. The great vintage was its own reward. 95 points. James Halliday Published 21 February 2023

Gold Medal and Trophy, Hunter Valley Wine Show. James Halliday 99 points. Arguably, one of the greatest red vintages in living memory', says Mount Pleasant. The flagship wine. Destemmed and crushed, short cold soak, open-fermented, matured in large format French oak (30% new) for 18 months. Has the gently throbbing power of a Rolls Royce; superb, deep crimson-purple hue, itself rare in the Hunter Valley. Countless layers of black fruits have absorbed the oak and put the undoubted tannins into limbo land. O'Shea would have died a happy man had this been his last wine. Dissecting it now is an academic exercise at best, so great is its...

97+ Points - Gary Walsh Wine Front " The winemaking and style of these 2017 reds is probably the best I’ve seen from this venerable old winery. Hats off to Adrian Sparks and Jim Chatto. This is a mix of Rosehill and ‘Estate’ fruit, with a sneaky, but very clever addition of 6% Pinot Noir. It’s now being made in a way that O’Shea would approve of, I suspect. It’s a beautiful wine, excellence in simplicity and verity of fruit, rather than industry in the winery. Perfumed, so fine and long, effortless flow and sense of grace, with an amalgam of mixed berries, spice, aniseed, and earth, supple but...

James Halliday 99 points. "An utterly stupendous wine, in the same league as Penfolds 1962 Bin 60A. This O'Shea has the complexity of a great tapestry woven centuries ago when time was of no consequence. The sky, the soil and the fruit coalesce into an entity that throbs with intensity and a never-ending kaleidoscope of blackberry, earth and leather flavours." HUNTER VALLEY - James Halliday (01 November 2020). This iconic wine is a fitting tribute to the legendary winemaker and Mount Pleasant founder, Maurice O’Shea, one of the most important figures in the modern Australian wine industry. The Maurice O’Shea Shiraz...

A blend of 80% Shiraz and 20% Pinot Noir. Small production. Big heart. 95 points - Mike Bennie The Wine Front "Cor blimey, this is a wine! Such beautiful texture, vibrancy, shimmering cherry juice and cranberry tang, layers of spice, herb, a bristling line of acidity and such fine and shape-giving tannins. It’s one of those wines that feels beautiful let alone tastes delicious. Lighter weight style with all the structure. Super stuff here." Halliday Wine Companion, 95 points. The tension between tannin, acidity, savoury nuances and fruit is high. It feels as though all the components here are sitting straight and alert....

This wine has been handled with kid gloves: hand picked and destemmed, 10% retained as whole bunches. Held in cold soak for three days, open fermented with thrice daily plunging; eight days on skins, then matured in French puncheons for eight months. The colour is excellent, and the abundant red fruits and superfine tannins are as good as they come. A new Hunter Valley style that challenges the idea that the Hunter is too hot for pinot noir. 95 points. James Halliday Published 14 February 2023. This rare wine is produced from the original pinot noir vines brought to Australia by James Busby.in 1833. 

Australia’s oldest Pinot Noir vineyard, planted in 1921 by Maurice O’Shea. The vines from this block have given the Australian Wine Industry the famed MV6 clone which is now planted throughout the greatest Pinot Noir grape-growing regions in Australia.   Still producing today, these vines are carefully tended and provide wines of structure and power.

Hand picked, destemmed whole berries, open-top small fermenters, nine days on skins, matured in French oak (25% new) for 12 months. Maurice O'Shea didn't waste time in planting the Old Paddock, with its slope and bright volcanic soil. It is a wine of overt structure and texture from ripe tannins, the fruit spectrum dark, the length impressive. It evolves as it sits on the tasting table, opening more doors as the perfume brings spice, licorice and game/charcuterie into play. 98 points. James Halliday Published 06 July 2023

James Halliday Wine Companion 96 points (Campbell Mattinson) "It's not a 'look at me' wine, but it's so beautifully well fruited, balanced and flavoured. This is a seriously good option for the cellar. The tannin is ripped with earth and coffee notes, the fruit is black-cherried and bountiful, it's svelte of texture and sustained through the finish. It's both faultless and characterful and, all things considered, is extremely well priced." TROPHIES (5) 2019 HUNTER VALLEY WINE SHOW Doug Seabrook Memorial Trophy / Best Red Wine of Show Hector Tulloch Memorial Trophy / Best Shiraz of Show Alexander Munro Trophy...

James Halliday 97 points. Hand picked, destemmed, open fermented, cold soaked then plunged; matured for nine months in French puncheons (20% new). This has a lighter, brighter colour than that of its siblings, and is lighter bodied and fresh, red fruits to the centre. It’s also more immediately approachable, its red fruits, tannin and acidity all symbiotically balanced. Yet, it will coast through the next 30 years without blinking. 97 points. James Halliday Published 06 July 2023

This is a new face, the blend proportions not stated, hand picked and co-fermented before 10 days on skins in tank then six months maturation in old puncheons. It's been very well made, a bright and juicy medium-bodied, fruit-driven wine, red fruits to the fore, ready now. 90 points. James Halliday Published 29 July 2023.   Hand picked and destemmed  to tank for a short cold soak.   Inoculated for a warm ferment of around 10 days with pumping over three times daily.    Pressed at dryness to old barrels for MLF before being racked to tank for blending which occurred in October after 6 months in wood....