Swinney Syrah Frankland River 2024

Swinney Syrah Frankland River 2024, Western Australia | 100% Syrah | 14.0% alc

The estate Syrah sits below the Farvie in the hierarchy but draws from many of the same sources — Wilson’s Pool and Powderbark vineyards, vertically trellised vines, dry-grown, hand harvested. What separates it from the Farvie isn’t a lesser vineyard but a different selection within those vineyards, a wider range of sites included in the blend, and a winemaking approach that applies slightly less intensive treatment in terms of whole-bunch percentage and time on skins. It’s not a lesser philosophy; it’s a different point on the same spectrum.

The 2024 is the first vintage to meaningfully incorporate the estate’s newer clonal material — clones 470 and 171 — alongside the more established Massale Selection vines. The Massale Selection has been the backbone of this wine since the beginning; it’s genetically diverse material that produces inconsistency in bunch size and ripening that, in good hands, translates to complexity in the finished wine. The newer clones were planted more recently and bring different growth habits and bunch structures. Together, the theory is that each contributes something the other can’t — layers of character that wouldn’t exist from either alone.

In the winery: 28% whole bunches, considerably lower than the Farvie Syrah’s 67%. Wild fermentation, 12 days on skins, then 11 months in large-format French oak with just 8% new — one of the lowest new-oak percentages you’ll find in any serious Australian red wine. The wine was aged on lees, which adds a creaminess to the texture that shows in the glass. Alcohol at 14.0%, just above the Farvie. Harvested 25th February and 11th March 2024 across the different sites. Bottled February 2025.

The colour is a deep, striking red that at its darkest reads as almost opaque at the centre before clearing to a vivid ruby at the edges. It’s darker and more saturated than most Australian Syrah at this price point. The nose is immediately engaging: dark plum leads, followed by blackcurrant, a curl of cracked black pepper, and a note of dark olive or tapenade that comes and goes. The whole-bunch component adds a violet lift and a herbal, peppery dimension that rides above the darker fruit. The oak is not detectable as a separate element — it has integrated into the background.

On the palate the entry is plush and forward. The fruit here is more openly expressed than in the Farvie — ripe plum and blueberry coming in confidently. The texture is softer on entry than the Farvie as well, with the lees aging contributing a mild creaminess that rounds the attack. The tannins are present and structured but they arrive smoothly. The spice from the whole-bunch inclusion threads through everything without competing with the fruit. The acidity provides support rather than prominence.

As the wine moves through the mid-palate, the clonal diversity starts to show its contribution. There are moments of brighter, more perfumed blue fruit — almost like fresh blueberry rather than baked — alongside the denser, more structured plum and olive character. The transitions between these aren’t jarring; they’re part of what makes the wine interesting to follow across the glass. The texture fills out in the mid-palate and the tannins, while fine-grained, firm up enough to give the wine real structure and the sense that there’s some cellaring upside here, even if the immediate drinking pleasure is obvious.

The finish is clean and reasonably long. The pepper returns lightly at the back. The tannins integrate well in the final seconds and don’t dry the palate out. There’s a slight mineral note at the very end — the Frankland River character showing up again, quieter here than in the Farvie wines but still present. The fruit fades gradually and the spice lingers.

At $46, the 2024 Swinney Syrah is a genuinely difficult wine to argue against. It’s not trying to be the Farvie and it doesn’t pretend to be — it’s a wine made from the same place with the same care, offered at a price that makes it accessible for regular drinking. The quality-to-price ratio here is exceptional by any measure. It rewards a bit of air in the glass and would benefit from another two or three years in the cellar, but it’s completely approachable now. The kind of wine you open on a weeknight and finish before you’ve made dinner.

Harvested: 25th February & 11th March 2024 | Bottled: February 2025 | pH 3.51 | TA 5.61 | RS 0.0g/L | 14.0% alc