A celestial beauty steps into the light
Domaine Naturaliste will make you reconsider syrah from the Margaret River, says Matthew Jukes.
2016 Domaine Naturaliste, Rachis Syrah, Margaret River, Western Australia (£25, reduced to £19.99 until 1 January, Hennings Wine, 01798-872485, HenningsWine.co.uk).
I stumbled across a pair of Domaine Naturaliste wines two years ago and immediately put them into my 100 Best Australian Wines Report for 2016/2017. When I was compiling this year's Report, I looked for these wines, but couldn't find them. As it turns out, they were changing importers and had "gone dark" for a few months. I reacquainted myself last week with the full range of wines and their maker, the beautifully ennobled Bruce Dukes, and I want to shout about these wines from the rooftops. I have just published a detailed review of the wines on my website at MatthewJukes.com, so please wallow in this portfolio of beauties at your pleasure.
I have picked out the most shocking wine in the line-up here for you to feast your palates on. I say the most shocking because I have never written up a Margaret River syrah in my life. We all acknowledge that Margaret River is a sauv/sem, chard and cab region, and nothing else really makes the grade. Wrong. I have scolded myself for being so narrow-minded and you will wonder why more syrahs have not stood up before when you taste this celestial wine. There is a magical detail to its scent to make for a wine of uncommon grandeur. It is not heavy or muscular, but agile, thrilling and devastatingly delicious. I urge you to track down every bottle you can.
MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year (MatthewJukes.com).
Get the latest financial news, insights and expert analysis from our award-winning MoneyWeek team, to help you understand what really matters when it comes to your finances.

Matthew Jukes has been the MoneyWeek wine correspondent since 2006.
He has worked in the UK wine business for well over three decades and during this time has written 14 wine books. His four highly-acclaimed, annual wine reports – the Burgundy En Primeur Report, the Bordeaux En Primeur Report, the Piemonte Report and the 100 Best Australian Wines – are published on his website.
Matthew is a winner of the International Wine and Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year Trophy. His thoughts, recommendations and tastings notes are followed very closely by the wine world at large.
-
Premium Bonds quiz: How much do you know about the NS&I savings product?Quiz Many savers choose Premium Bonds in the hopes of winning a prize in the monthly draws. How much do you know about the savings product?
-
UK dividends rose in final quarter of 2025, but share buybacks ate into investor payoutsLast year saw dividend growth continue to fall below pre-pandemic averages, against a backdrop of increasing share buybacks.