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The UK's No.1 Australian Wine Specialist   Before we launch into the exciting detail – we thought it prudent to get the bumf over with first. Please do read the below as it will save you an email along with a whole host of questions. ETA into the UK: September 2023 We expect to deliver your orders by mid-end-September. Stock Given our move to our new HQ residence, we are keeping stocks low. We do not envisage stocking more than 60 bottles of each wine and reason why it’s best to secure your ’21 Utopos orders now (it’s cheaper too). Pricing To quote Kym, “Pricing across the range does need to see an increase in order to keep pace with soaring costs of production, unfortunately.” So, we unveil the ‘new’ prices albeit we believe the quality outshines the small cost increase. Pre-Arrival price @ £155.00 IB per case RRP @ £181.50 IB per case $510.00 is the domestic six pack price (equivalent to £275.00) *All duty paid orders will be delivered without charge (mainland UK only). Under bond prices (excludes UK duty, VAT and delivery) Alternatively, pay the duty and VAT at the time of ordering if you plan to take ‘domestic’ delivery upon arrival – The price is clearly shown by each wine. 1. Home Delivery: If you wish for your wines to be delivered, please select the DP option when ordering and the price will include duty and VAT. Please select the 'Special free delivery' option at checkout and include your delivery address and any delivery instructions and we will ship your wines, upon arrival, free of charge. 2. Transfer to another bonded account: If you wish to transfer your wines to your own bonded account, please select the relevant option at checkout and include the details on your order. We will automatically transfer your wines upon arrival. 3. Storage with The Vinorium: If you wish to store these wines with The Vinorium, please ensure you are logged into your account and select the ‘Customer Cellar’ option at checkout. We will contact you when the wine arrives to raise your storage invoice. Please avoid checking out as a guest if you wish to store in our customer cellar.  Launch offer ends 9.00am Thursday 1st JuneIt has been over two years since we last launched a new vintage from Utopos. The hiatus being down to Kym’s decision not to bottle any 2020s due to smoke taint (a direct result from the devastating bush fires in South Australia) which were recorded in his tank samples. The compounds in smoke which are primarily responsible for the taint are the free volatile phenols that are produced when wood is burnt. During fermentation glycosides can break apart, releasing the volatile phenols into the must or wine. Even low-level smoke taint can heighten with more time in barrel or post bottling. The risk to the Utopos brand was too great and reason why Kym took the sensible route… For many of you, Utopos has quickly become a much-loved producer, a fact reinforced by the sheer number of bottles sold - over 6,600. However, The Vinorium family grows weekly and reason why we thought we’d share the story of our relationship with Kym and his fabulous Utopos wines… Back in the summer of 2020 we found ourselves faced with a dilemma, we received samples from a new producer which had left us scratching our heads somewhat. In short, the wines were extraordinary versus their respective export price. We sample thousands of Aussie wines each year – most being in the premium bracket and north of £30 per bottle. The 2017 / 2018 collection comfortably outshone the vast majority of wines in our portfolio – many ‘new’ samples did not have a chance… Controlling sales was going to prove a challenge (as you have witnessed recently with a double sell-out (1,188 bottles of the ’18 Vougeot Premier Cru). So, and a first (yet to be repeated) we decided to take a different line whilst having some fun. We released our allocation of each wine with only our tasting note. There was no mention of the producer, the region or a bottle shot. Less is more – Let the tasting note doing all the talking. The first release, the 2017 / 2018 Shiraz, sold out in 24 hours. The 2017 / 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon followed and sold out within a few hours. We shared the success with Kym, who, and as you can imagine, was thrilled to bits, “From day one my dealings with everyone at Vinorium have been effortless, professional, and totally enjoyable! Even more enjoyable when their first order of this brand-new label sold out before it even hit the shores of the UK and they doubled down with another order! Their launch of Utopos Wines and market activation was second to nothing that I have ever experienced before! Since then, in a time of unequalled world chaos, we have seen the growth of our Utopos wines through Vinorium eclipse those in every other export market.” Some winemakers take time to respond to our lengthy Q&As and Kym Teusner was no different. In fact, he took the entire time the wines were on the ocean. “So sorry for the delay…. Please let this be a lesson for you…. Don’t give KT time to procrastinate!!! I spent a few days thinking on this and slowly it worked its way to the back of my brain only to wake me at 3am this morning with a ‘S**T!!!, I haven’t responded yet!” The wait was well worth it as we all thoroughly enjoyed reading Kym’s retorts. We often learn more from the winemaker this way than we do via Zoom or telephone. I had waxed lyrical about his Cabernet Sauvignons believing them to be some of the best I had sampled in a very long time. Low and behold, we learnt that the previous owner sold the fruit to Penfolds which formed part of Bin 707, arguably one of Australia’s greatest Cabernet Sauvignons and certainly one of the most expensive. We have also shared the story with Kym’s Block 1 Shiraz sourced from a tiny one-acre block planted on a red clay and ironstone section of the vineyard in 1974 to the famous Kalimna 3C clone of Shiraz. Block 3C, Kalimna Vineyard is a very special site indeed. To many, perhaps the most hallowed, identifiable single block in Australia. The 3C component normally contributes to Penfolds Grange however, and when the block produces perfect fruit, Penfolds release Bin 170 which is an extremely rare wine. Released only for the second time in history, both the experimental Bin 170 made in 1973 and the second release in 2010 were sourced from Block 3C in the Kalimna Vineyard and released at $1,800 per bottle. 2021 Block 1 will be released next year. Our opening Shiraz offer stated, “What I will say is, if you love Dan Standish’s wines, you will fall in love with these…” Kym had been completely unaware of our tasting notes (it had been a mystery to everyone outside of our HQ walls) so his reference to Dan and their relationship was fascinating (you can read his comments below). We sampled the 2021s over a few days – decanting each wine for 4-hours. During the growing season, the cool Barossa nights retained their natural acidity, resulting in cooling ribbons of fresh, wonderfully balanced fruit that show throughout the collection… Let’s be honest, all Utopos wines are excellent however, I believe the 2021s are the best to date – They are finer, naturally polished, exquisitely balanced and not at the expense of the fruit character. Enjoy the read and enjoy my tasting notes… Cheers, Stu  About Kym"I actually had zero exposure to wine whilst I was growing up! I was born and spent the first 20 years of my life in a small farming town named Tailem Bend, on the banks of Australia’s most important river – The Murray.My father bought the property as virgin land in 1965 and developed it into a sheep and cereal farm raising merino lambs and growing barley and wheat. Wine wasn’t a thing in country towns throughout Australia in those days. Actually, quite the opposite in a very, very strong masculine culture – if you were seen to be drinking wine you must’ve been one of those ‘toffy well to do types’ or worse…. Strictly a beer and spirits culture as far as alcohol was concerned. I had a wonderful childhood, growing up on a farm near a riverside town – lots of freedom and outdoors, camping, fishing, learnt to drive and shoot from about 12. Only in retrospect do I realise how lucky I was to have that childhood experience. Whilst rich in experience, however, we were not living a luxurious lifestyle. My mother and father fought hard for everything that we had. Every dollar was hard earned and judiciously used. When it was time for me to start making some life decisions I thought that there must be a different way and decided (with a not so small nudge from my mother) to move to the city, Adelaide, to study business management. I found some work at a restaurant in Adelaide to pay my way through university. It was here that I was first introduced to wine. I think Rockford’s Barossa Valley Rifle Range Cabernet Sauvignon was the first wine that ever passed my lips. And I was instantly captivated and delved straight in. I couldn’t get enough. Whenever I had a gap between full time study and full time work I was squeezing in wine courses – wine appreciation, international wine, small scale winemaking and soon after completion of the Business Management degree I was on a plane to Napa, Sonoma, Rhône – on a backpacker’s budget with substantial stops in LA, NYC and London… Until I made the decision to apply to the University of Adelaide to take their Oenology degree. I was accepted into the course so had to make my way back to Australia, beg for my job back and get back into study. I’m not terrible at study but it’s not one of my favourite things to do so I overloaded the course and pushed through most of it in 3 years rather than 4 and pushed my way into working with my brother in law, Michael, at Torbreck Vintners – initially just as work experience in the vineyards and then as an intern in the winery under Dan Standish. I had a very steep, practical learning curve at Torbreck and in my second year there Dan had me overseeing production at their satellite winery in Lyndoch, in the southern Barossa. This was 2002 and was also the year that Michael and I established Teusner & Page as a company and purchased 5 tonnes of Grenache for our first wine under the Teusner Wines label. This was seen as a conflict to my role at Torbreck so I found myself working with Rolf Binder who was far more open to me making my own wines whilst also working for him, to the point that he allowed me to use his old disused cellar to store and blend our wines. I happily credit Rolf with giving me the leg up that allowed us to develop Teusner Wines to what it is today. Teusner experienced exponential growth of at least 200% annually for about a decade to the point of becoming a significant player in the premium Barossa Valley wine scene, picking up many peer review accolades along the way."  Finding the Perfect Vineyard“A great deal of my time was spent snooping around the Barossa trying to source grapes from established growers for Teusner Wines in the early days. It was in this endeavour that I first came across the vineyard that we now call Utopos. We were already sourcing fruit from vineyards adjacent to this property for Teusner that were making some of our very best Shiraz wines (Albert and Righteous) so I knew the ability of the geology and microclimate of the area to produce outstanding reds. I instantly fell in love with the site and the way that it was planted. I so desperately wanted to play with the fruit that was growing here. However, the owner of the property was signed into pretty tight contracts with Penfolds and wasn’t willing to jeopardise that to sell me a bit of out of contract. He did nothing to lessen my desire, however… Bragging to me that the Cabernet Sauvignon was some of the only Barossa fruit to make Bin 707 grade etc, etc. So I was forced to just dream about it every time I drove past to visit my other growers in the area. Until the day in late 2014 that the owners decided it was time to slow down and move into town and put the property up for Auction. All of the big names from around the area were at the auction. Standing on one of the highest points of the area overlooking some of the most beautiful views in the Barossa. I was so desperate to have it – these properties rarely become available over multiple generations - so I just went in with all guns blazing and put in my best offer as first bid. It was the one and only bid and the property was ours! Regardless of the quality of the geology and microclimate, however, all properties need ongoing attention and this had perhaps been let go a little over a few years. So we have been investing heavily in the property since we have owned it with upgrades to best practice trellising, irrigation systems and planting of the last 20 acres.”  The Wines“To be honest I think that we are still getting to where we want to be. Still understanding the site and how best to work with it to produce the best fruit and wine. The wines are very good, no doubt – as evidenced by the immediate high praise received from the critics – but they will definitely achieve greater heights as we grow to understand the site and fruit better. As they stand, the wines comfortably sit with some of the best in the Valley but I do aspire for them not to be shoulder to shoulder with these wines, but better. Dan Standish, I’m chasing you down… These sort of wines are created in the vineyard. It’s entirely about the site and the fruit grown there. Key is to have a happy, healthy vineyard. Stressed vineyards creating great wines is a myth. Sure, they will grow great wines occasionally, when conditions are perfect, but not consistently. Plants aren’t that different to humans in that regard – we don’t work well and produce our best when we are constantly stressed out but occasionally the pressure may produce a diamond…. On the flip side, if we are living in the top paddock we tend to get fat and lazy and again, not produce our best work. It’s a fine balance and that’s the key. Keep the vineyard in the happy zone – not too happy but also not stressed the whole time. If one can achieve this, the resultant fruit should be concentrated in flavour and balanced in terms of its chemistry. Whilst Utopos is perhaps a slightly selfish endeavour, pursuing my own dream, I hope that as a result I can bring a true and definitive expression of one of the best terroirs in the Barossa to wine lovers across the world. These aren’t just another bottle of Barossa wine, but hopefully wines that speak of a specific piece of the Barossa, that describe the season in which they were grown and contain a small part of my personal story. The wines of the Barossa are so easy to love for their generosity and richness, the wines of Utopos aspire to be the epitome of this.”  Kym’s introduction to the "almost impossibly perfect" 2021 vintage“The consensus from all winemakers across the Barossa Valley is that 2021 represents one of the finest years in recent history with the wines showing exceptional finesse and balance whilst still displaying intense and rich flavours and colours that we expect of the Barossa. Autumn and winter provided much needed rainfalls, after 2 years of almost drought conditions, and low temperatures that prepared the vines and soil profiles for the upcoming growing season. Summer conditions were relatively moderate (with most of January recording temps below 30C) and dry providing a nice smooth maturation curve for the developing fruit. The seasonal conditions maintained bunch numbers and berry size at modest levels especially within the Utopos vineyard. Whilst the Barossa Valley generally saw a 19% increase reported yields, Utopos held steady at its meagre 1.4 tonnes per acre (or 22 HL per Ha). The perfect conditions meant that this light crop was ripened perfectly with incredible balance and intensity with harvest occurring in the final week of March. It also meant plentiful native grasses grew around and throughout the vineyard which served to keep the local hares and Kangaroos happy and away from the fresh growth on the vines! The moderate climatic conditions (along with our ever increasing familiarity with the vineyard) served to produce fruit that expresses purity in varietal character, particularly in Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache with the '21 Cab Shiraz potentially being my favourite wine of the vintage with beautifully pretty cabernet aromatics and the richness of shiraz on the palate. My view is supported by a local critic, Huon Hooke, who is a notoriously hard marker on Barossa wines - “Deep and saturated colour, the bouquet is somewhat reticent, spice and briar evident, while the flavour is intense and powerful, mouth-filling and properly ripe. It's also nicely balanced with a touch of elegance to it. Concentrated dark fruits, principally blackberry. Excellent flavour and aroma, a big wine with balance and style.” Huon’s reviews of the 2021 wines earned Utopos a place in his Top 100 wineries in Australia list. My excitement about the quality of the 2021 wines was amplified after the difficult decision not to bottle any of the 2020 wines for fear of smoke taint issues resulting from the widespread bushfires around South Australia during the 2020 growing season. Whilst this was a terribly hard decision from a vintage continuity and financial point of view it was the only decision available to me to ensure that the Utopos brand maintains the trust, loyalty and respect of its collectors around the world. In my opinion the wines have responded fantastically to the new large format oak regime with the Cabernet maturing in 2500L foudre and the Shiraz in 4500L foudre. The wines are brighter and tighter with less overt oak impact I think. Everything is heading in the right direction.” “A hallmark of the Utopos Vineyard on Roennfeldt Road is the pitch perfect acid/ tannin balance we can achieve in fully ripened fruit. This provides for delicious, highly approachable wines in their youth, whilst enabling them to develop over a 10-15 year period, and maybe more. The 2021 vintage was almost impossibly perfect, and has produced a series of red wines that will continue to showcase the amazing potential of this site for many years to come. Mild weather from bud burst in late September to harvest across March and April provided ideal conditions for steady, even canopy development, fruit set and ripening. The rain cycle through spring, summer and autumn was perfectly timed, providing regular refreshment to the vines, and maintaining a modest amount of sub soil moisture, resulting in average yields of approximately 1.5 tonne per acre.” "Very good indeed – grown-up, characterful, and wonderfully stylish / smart (in an understated way)." 2021 Utopos Mataro Shiraz GrenacheStuart McCloskey “A blend of 55% Mataro, 32% Shiraz and 13% Grenache. The bouquet opens to cracked pepper, blackberry, oodles of ripe, dark fruits (plum, mulberry etcetera), a smidgeon of liquorice, a dusting of paprika, cooling graphite, iodine, black olive, dried herbs, saline and sweet spice – fresh coffee with more aeration.. The palate is medium-bodied, the fruit is ripe and succulent (mineral infused) and wonderfully glossy. There’s a strong case to say this already displays perfect balance - The acidity and tannins are spot-on. Ground coffee, violet, a touch of tartness from redcurrant – The palate feel is both juicy and vigorous. Blood orange fans out on the uber, long finish. Very good indeed – grown-up, characterful, and wonderfully stylish / smart (in an understated way). Exceptional. In terms of drinkability – I entirely agree with Kym’s suggestions. It’s ready now (we decanted for 4-hours) and will age for a decade. Served using Zalto Bordeaux glassware.” Kym Teusner “Grenache and Mataro were harvested for the MSG on March 16 and cofermented with a 20% whole bunch inclusion with twice daily pumpovers. The fermentation was run warm with regular pump overs for 6 days before being pressed off to tank and barrel with a couple of baumé remaining. The wine was then matured in 20% new balance 3rd use tight grained med toast french hogsheads for almost 18 months. A blend of 55% Mataro, 32% Shiraz and 13% Grenache was matured in 30% new tight grained French oak and 70% seasoned oak hogsheads for 18 months. The Mataro component leads the aromatics with fine spice and herbal characters, with Shiraz and Grenache in support with black and red fruits. On the palate, the juicy red fruits of Grenache and the plumper, darker flavour profile of Shiraz integrate beautifully with the charcuterie like savoury characters of the Mataro. The flavour profile of the wine is rich, and ripe, but without an inch of fat on it! A wine that will reward straight up upon release, but also built to last for 10-15 years.” "Unquestionably, this is the best Utopos Cabernet Sauvignon (to me, anyway). Simply, a sensation." 2021 Utopos Cabernet SauvignonStuart McCloskey “Hello beautiful – this bouquet ticks all my boxes (‘Wow’ shrieked the team). It’s akin to a dark hole of nori, graphite / lead pencil, cold steel, violet, cassis, blueberry compote, sundried tomatoes, sweet Mediterranean herbs, peppermint, and piped tobacco. Overall, it’s a sublime arrangement of fruit cloaked in a cooling mist of sea spray. Incredibly exciting and I have run out of superlatives. Save to say – this is thrilling and one wine which I will happily sniff all day long. The palate runs to the same, cooling tune, albeit succulent and moreish. The tannins melt into the ripe, creamy fruits – they’re almost invisible. There’s the lightest touch from the oak. Power juxtaposed with finesse - neatly done too… Highly impressive. Unquestionably, this is the best Utopos Cabernet Sauvignon (to me, anyway). Simply, a sensation. Drink now (we decanted for 4-hours) and will age for 10-15 years. Served using Zalto Bordeaux glassware.” Kym Teusner “There are two primary Cabernet Sauvignon blocks on the Utopos Vineyard, one easterly facing and the other northerly. Both blocks are planted in depleted ironstone dappled soil that naturally restricts yields to a maximum of 1.5 tonnes per acre (in a good year). The eastern facing vineyard, exposed predominantly to the cooler morning sun, produces fruit that delivers classic Barossa Valley Cabernet varietal characters of red peppercorn, eucalypt and red fruits. The northerly block is more exposed to the warmer, afternoon sun, bringing more blackcurrant and chocolate aroma and flavour characters to the wine. On the nose, you enjoy the best of both vineyard blocks with highlights of peppercorn, red fruits and eucalypt competing for attention alongside a good lick of dark fruit and chocolate. The palate displays plenty of bright, sweet red/ black fresh fruit characters embraced by very fine long tannins. The fresh acidity that defines all wines from the Utopos Vineyard makes this a lip smackingly good red wine drink. Harvested on March 16, 2021. A short cold soak followed by a cool 10 day ferment and then into a 2500L foudre and a few new, second and 3rd use very tight grained french barriques for almost 18 months maturation. The age worthiness of great Barossa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is well proven, and whilst a delicious and enjoyable wine in its youth, you can expect this wine to start to stride out from 10 years old and continue to kick on for at least another decade…or more!”  "Brilliantly detailed along with a sense of ineffable completeness. Civilised, nuanced, sculptured, tender and perfectly enjoyable today." 2021 Utopos Cabernet Shiraz BlendStuart McCloskey "The ’21 is a 70% Cabernet Sauvignon / 30% Shiraz blend and selected from the best blocks on the Utopos Vineyard. Purity is the hallmark for the 2021 vintage. The bouquet unfurls to flowing ribbons of sweet, exotic spice, blackcurrant, cassis, damson, mulberry, black raspberry, violet, cinnamon, liquorice and salt. The palate feel is beautiful and medium-bodied. Powerful yet juxtaposed with masterful restraint. Tense, the fruit is edged with wonderful freshness, the acidity is faultless and the tannins gently roll across the palate. Again, the flavours (black fruits tinged with graphite) straddle the lines of purity. Less drama and all the better for it as this shows the ‘serious’ side to this great, Aussie blend. Brilliantly detailed along with a sense of ineffable completeness. Civilised, nuanced, sculptured, tender and perfectly enjoyable today. I love the long, salty finish… Decanted for 4-hours and served using Zalto Bordeaux glassware. Drink now to 2035 (a few years in the bottle is recommended).” Kym Teusner “I love Cab Shiraz – a great blend that we can call our own. First release was sold almost entirely to the UK, they fell in love with the stuff When a single vineyard produces exceptional quality Shiraz and Cabernet Sauvignon, you’re compelled to create your own contribution to the distinctly Australian art of blending these two classic varieties. I’ve long loved Cabernet Shiraz blends, because they give you the best of both worlds – the focus and palate drive of Cabernet, with the lushness of Shiraz through the mid palate. This wine is a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Shiraz selected from the best blocks on the Utopos Vineyard. The fruit was harvested and fermented separately on skins for 7 days with twice daily pumpovers before being pressed to a blend of small and larger format oak, approximately 25% new French with the balance a mix of 2nd and 3rd use French oak barriques, for 18 months.” "Like a great song, the flavours gradually build – the senses tingle with excitement. The finish is epically long…" 2021 Utopos ShirazStuart McCloskey “The bouquet is deeply concentrated and really needs longer than the four-or-so hours I allowed. Black pepper, blue and black fruit compote, espresso, lots of minerality, black olive, violet pastille, smoked meat (albeit nascent), vanilla, fruitcake, clove, liquorice, and a long list of spices – too many to list. All sweet and tinged with a little wood smoke. Unmistakable blood orange as the glass approaches empty. The palate is full-bodied, muscular and sits on broad shoulders. The flavours spread-out and flood the senses with a wonderful sense of voluminosity. The amalgamation of fruit and violet pastille, warming earth, a thrust of dried spice along with minéralité are balanced with ripe tannins – freshness provides a light, cooling touch. Like a great song, the flavours gradually build – the senses tingle with excitement. The finish is epically long… Another fabulous release that will be at its best in 8-10-years, but has the foundations and quality to age for decades. When you choose to open a bottle is entirely down to your preferential style. Served using Zalto Bordeaux glassware.” Kym Teusner “This wine is a construct of fruit harvested from the best Shiraz blocks (harvested on the 25th of February )of the Utopos vineyard that varies substantially in aspect – with blocks facing all points of the compass – and soil composition across an undulating landscape. In particular, the sandy heavy red loam soils intersected with black cracking clays that are the feature of the south eastern block bring incredible complexity to a wine that abounds with red and black fruits, and touches of mocha. After a 5 day cold soak period, the fruit was allowed to gradually warm to kick off a slow ferment over 7 days on skins with twice daily pumpovers before being pressed off to seasoned French 4,600 litre foudres for 18 months, alongside a smaller selection of new and seasoned French hogsheads (maximum 3rd use). The final blend saw a small addition of around 5% utopos cabernet sauvignon. The wine shows a beautiful spice lead on the nose, with black fruits following. The key to the character of this wine is the stunningly fresh acidity, making the wine so pure, bright and fresh on the palate. It’s definitely a handsomely proportioned wine, abundant in flavour concentration, but the tannins and acid bring structure and freshness to the pure fruit that drives down the length of the palate. This will really hit the mark as a 10 year old, and kick on for another decade after that.”  The 2021 Utopos Mixed Case (6x75cl)Contains: 2 x 2021 Shiraz 2 x 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon 1 x 2021 Mataro/Shiraz/Grenache 1 x 2021 Shiraz/Cabernet Sauvignon Blend £202.05 per case (6x75cl) Duty Paid Only Not available Under Bond |
