Who makes it?

Mount Horrocks Nero d’Avola may be a red wine you might not expect from Australia, but it is a good one. Stephanie Toole’s Mount Horrocks Wines is among Australia’s finest small wineries, making just a small run of organic Clare Valley wines per year. Her wines are now also biodynamic as well. 

 Winelovers know her for her finely tuned Riesling. Of which she also makes into a gloriously fresh and not-too-sweet dessert wine by concentrating the sugars by cutting the canes to restrict the water supply to the grapes. 

However, as well as the classic Clare Valley reds of Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz, Stephanie also grows Nero d’Avola. She especially selected and imported the grape in 2006, planting it in 2007. This makes her one of the first vineyards in Australia to grow it. Unsurprisingly, Nero d’Avola is now a red grape to watch for from Australian vineyards. 

To find out more about Nero d’Avola, please read: Nero d’Avola – Why you should be drinking Nero d’Avola!  and  Six Nero d’Avola wines to get into your glass NOW!

How do they make it?

This is an organic and biodynamic wine. The grapes grow in the Watervale region of the Clare Valley on a cooler site. This gives added elegance and complexity to the wine. After fermentation, the wine matures for a year in French oak. 20% of the barrels are new. 

What does it taste like?

This is an elegantly structured red wine with the classic black cherry fruit with a grounding of earthiness. Some lighter raspberry fruit joins the ensemble too. It is fuller in body with shapely tannins. It is also a mid term cellar candidate too. 

What to drink it with?

Drink this lush red with red meats, roasted, burgered, stewed or any way you like your meat.

Cheese

A good cheese to match the Mount Horrocks Nero d’Avola is a truffled flavoured cheese such as Cheddar. Or it will go very well with a Comte, Manchego or Pecorino.

Quickie review « This Nero d’Avola is a great introduction to how good Australian Nero can be. »

Country of Origin:  Clare Valley, Australia.
Tasting Date: April 2026
Price:  UK £27 | AU$50
Drink: now – 5+ years 
Needs food: no
Source: tasting

If you like Nero d’Avola wines, why not check out:
Nero d’Avola – Why you should be drinking Nero d’Avola!
 Six Nero d’Avola wines to get into your glass NOW!

Visit mounthorrocks for more.