James Halliday Winery Rating   4 ½ Stars

Marius 2005 Symposium Reviews

 Gary Walsh of Winorama: 

Marius ‘Symposium’ Shiraz Mourvedre 2005

Aromas of blackberry/boysenberry/blueberry, spice, earth, black licorice, cocoa and vanilla. On the full bodied palate there’s a flood of sweet black and blue berry fruit, spice and more earthy savoury black olive flavours. Suprisingly ripe mouthcoating tannins considering the high mourvedre content. A deliciously warm ride right through to the extended finish. I think there is a huge amount of development potential in this wine - especially when the mourvedre starts to break on through to the other side. Make sure you decant this for a couple of hours if you need to do one now.

Rated : 95 Points
Tasted : Aug06
Alcohol : 14.5%
Price : $30
Closure : Screwcap
Drink : 2007 - 2015+

James Halliday - Australian Wine Companion 2008:

Symposium McLaren Vale Shiraz Mourvedre 2005:

Medium red-purple; an attractive blend, the shiraz providing the structure and an important part of the quite complex flavours; spice, blackberry, cherry and licorice running through to a long finish.  A 50/50 blend.  Screwcap. 14.5% alc.  Rating 93     Drink to 2018

Campbell Mattinson of Winefront:

Marius Symposium McLaren Vale Shiraz Mourvedre 2005 ($30) screwcap:

Marius hasn't put a foot wrong yet and here we go again: this is lovely. Red wine drinkers are going to love it. It's ripe and smooth and built to hook into, but there's also a notch of interest above and beyond the norm. Beautiful tannin structure. Ribs of chocolate cake and earth, cedar and vanillin, liqueured plums and orange rind. A warm, mouthfilling wine that you can't help but love - I suspect that it would have been even better at a degree or so less alcohol, but that's just me. It's a super wine. Drink: 2006-2012. 92 points.

Winestate Magazine - Special Edition 2006 - New Releases

Marius Symposium Shiraz Mourvedre 2005

Rating: ¬¬¬¬¬ Top in Category

McLaren Vale Wine Show:

Gold Medal - Winner Class 15 - 2005 Red Blends

Judges comments:   Good class with quite concentrated wines.  Top wine had lovely complexity and sweetness.

Ric Einstein of Torbwine:

Marius 2005 Symposium is an equal blend of Shiraz and Mourvedre; it is sealed under screwcap and sells for $30. 240 cases have been made. The bouquet is closed and tight but did show earthy, meaty notes and mushroom. A rock-solid wine with an excellent structure; it is backed by tight, fine-grained dusty tannins and deep, pure fruit. The perfectly ripe fruit has a black profile with charcuterie, liquorice, coffee essence, and whilst it’s sweet on the uptake with offsetting dominant savoury flavours, its chewie and finishes with fantastic persistence. Muscular-weight with a supple consistency, it's a terrific wine and something a little different. It certainly stands out from the crowd. Rated as Highly Recommended with **** for value, it should peak around 2011 and beyond.