Featuring in the James Halliday's Top 100 Wines of 2020 as one of the Top Red Wines Under $30, the Thistledown Cunning Plan Shiraz 2019 is another wine from this tiny estate that will make you 'astounded, smitten and swooning, all at once' (HWC).

Achieving 96 points from Halliday, a monster score for a wine that only costs just over £13 per bottle IB, and supported with 93 points from James Suckling, this is a 'fleshy and seductive' Shiraz with 'really effortless drinkability' (JS).

Although the winemaking approach here is simple, it 'reflects cunning winemaking' (JH) to ensure they bring out the most of the McLaren Vale terroir, an area that has long been the home to some of Australia’s finest expressions of Shiraz. Thistledown use no new oak and do whole-berry fermentation which puts a rich gloss on the palate 'without overloading the tannin structure' (JH).

With stunning aromas of 'fresh blackberry, plum and mulberry' (JS), this is such a soft and sumptuous Shiraz you will struggle to keep your hands off, but if you can, it will cellar up to 2039.

Thistledown is headed up by two British-based Masters of Wine, Giles Cooke and Fergal Tynan, who met on the MW course in 1998. Bonding over their love of Australian wine, they eventually decided to start a winery together. Seeking out the best cooler climate, old-vine vineyards they could find in Australia, all their wines combine a profound terroir-focused approach with exceptional value for money.

Offered today at the global lowest market price of just £80 per case IB, there is no doubt the Thistledown Cunning Plan Shiraz 2019 is value stunner from this exciting pair.