Avani Syrah 2022

Syrah wasn’t supposed to be the defining variety here. Shashi Singh initially pursued Pinot Noir on the Mornington Peninsula estate, until the site kept suggesting otherwise. Today the family’s Syrah is the wine they believe speaks most clearly of their place. The vineyard sits around 160 metres above sea level on the Western Port and Bass Strait side of the ridge. Rich red clay over basalt through the upper section gives them power and structure; lower down, greyer clay and silty loam correspond with the finer perfume and spice they see in the fruit.

More important is what has happened to that soil. The Singhs have watched this vineyard through conventional farming, then organic practice and roughly two decades of biodynamics, removing herbicides and systemic chemicals and introducing biodynamic preparations alongside sulphur and limited copper. Their evidence is observational rather than experimental: fewer disease problems, healthier vines, wider picking windows and physiological flavour arriving without having to chase sugar. Shashi describes the resulting change as greater purity; Rohit calls it greater detail. They haven’t tried to turn Syrah into something else in the cellar. They changed the farming. When I asked Shashi how she found the wines change over time since she converted from conventional, she put it beautifully: “Nature is very forgiving”, explaining that the berries themselves looked healthier, the texture in the wines changed, and increased in complexity, the finish long, and the identity of the place became more and more unmistakable. 

The 2022, from a cool growing season, is completely destemmed, naturally fermented and raised with 50% new François Frères oak. That sounds substantial until you taste it. The palate carries small tart forest berries and rooibos before a savoury, almost pickled acidity begins to cut through the darker fruit. The tannins are silky but persistent; a chalky, briny sensation accumulates with each sip and gives considerable length without heaviness.

Fresh truffle over beef carpaccio would make sense here, as would squid-ink pasta or beetroot risotto. The wine itself still feels as though pieces of the picture are being assembled, as time unravels. The Singhs say they are not making to style, but to place. Twenty-two years into farming this vineyard differently, the Syrah smells increasingly like an argument they no longer need to make. 

Liinaa Berry

Liinaa Berry is a Melbourne-based wine critic and consultant with over a decade of experience as a sommelier and wine buyer across Australia and around the world where she has built award-winning wine programs and championed independent producers with conviction. Now focused on reviewing and writing, Liinaa brings a floor-trained palate and commercial insight to her assessments. She is also the Melbourne Ambassador for Star Wine List and serves on the committee of Sommeliers Australia. An advocate for site-driven wines and thoughtful farming, Liinaa is particularly drawn to producers who articulate a clear sense of place. Her tasting philosophy centres on structure, balance and context — always asking not just how a wine tastes, but why it matters.