2023 Bondar Junto GSM

The ultimate in drinkability. A pitch-perfect modern McLaren Vale red that truly delivers for the price. Grenache is the key grape.
4.6
Rated 4.6 out of 5 stars
16 Reviews

Price:
Sale price$28.00
Stock:
In stock, ready to ship
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Description

This dynamic couple have carved out a niche for their eponymous label as one of the most exciting and in demand wineries in McLaren Vale.

Drinkability is writ large across the range. The 'Junto' (Spanish for 'together') is a wine made for easily enjoying with friends and family.

The Grenache is the main character, with Shiraz, Mataro and Cinsault the supporting cast.

This is as delicious as medium-bodied reds get from this part of the world. Incredibly versatile and impossibly moreish, Andre and Selina have done it again.

94 points
"This is 65/16/8/8/3% grenache/shiraz/mataro/cinsault/carignan. It feels even finer and more elegant than prior. A cool year, yes, but it feels like evolution, too. Either way, what a charming thing it is, redolent of blue and red florals, just-picked wild raspberry and bright-red cherries, along with hardy Mediterranean herbs. It’s not just about front, though, with a fine and complex netting of natural tannin and a vivid line of acidity. What elevates it is skipping the easy path of pulpy frivolity for a gastronomic architecture and lightness of feel."
- Marcus Ellis (Halliday Wine Companion)

91 points
"Frisky red fruited style with a smattering of dried herb and lemon zest. It’s light to medium-bodied, strawberry and orange rind, light grip of tannin, kind of edgy in character, though I like the fresh spiced and sappy strawberry thing it offers. There’s something like ozone or coal dust in the mix too, and the finish is lively, spicy and red fruited, with a Campari-like bitterness. Fun wine, could take a light chill even."
- Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)

94 points - "This is 65/16/8/8/3% grenache/shiraz/mataro/cinsault/carignan. It feels even finer and more elegant than prior. A cool year, yes, but it feels like evolution, too. Either way, what a charming thing it is, redolent of blue and red florals, just-picked wild raspberry and bright-red cherries, along with hardy Mediterranean herbs. It’s not just about front, though, with a fine and complex netting of natural tannin and a vivid line of acidity. What elevates it is skipping the easy path of pulpy frivolity for a gastronomic architecture and lightness of feel." - Marcus Ellis (Halliday Wine Companion)

92 points - "With welcoming, juicy, soft berries on the palate, this is an uncomplicated but pure and satisfying mouthful. The vibrant acidity and lifted feel to the aromatics leaves you wanting more – not always the way with some more ponderous GSMs. Easy to like, if not a terribly deep or complex wine. But great precision to the fruit and texture." - Matt Walls (Decanter)

91 points - "Frisky red fruited style with a smattering of dried herb and lemon zest. It’s light to medium-bodied, strawberry and orange rind, light grip of tannin, kind of edgy in character, though I like the fresh spiced and sappy strawberry thing it offers. There’s something like ozone or coal dust in the mix too, and the finish is lively, spicy and red fruited, with a Campari-like bitterness. Fun wine, could take a light chill even." - Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)

Customer Reviews

4.6
Rated 4.6 out of 5 stars
Based on 16 reviews
Total 5 star reviews: 9 Total 4 star reviews: 7 Total 3 star reviews: 0 Total 2 star reviews: 0 Total 1 star reviews: 0
16 reviews
  • TW
    Tony W.
    Verified Buyer
    8 months ago
    2022 Bondar Junto GSM
    Reviewing
    2022 Bondar Junto GSM
    Rated 4 out of 5 stars
    A very good GSM

    It's really good. It's a bit 'different' from what I'm used to drink but doesn't suffer in comparison. Give it a go and you 'll be very pleasantly surprised.

  • WR
    Will R.
    Verified Buyer
    Wine Knowledge Level Enthusiast
    1 year ago
    Wine Knowledge Level Enthusiast
    2022 Bondar Junto GSM
    Reviewing
    2022 Bondar Junto GSM
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Beautiful slap of fruit

    Soft tannins and dry, but that doesn’t preclude a beautiful slap of cherry fruit. Hint of spice in there somewhere too. A lovely drop.

  • N
    Neil
    Verified Buyer
    Wine Knowledge Level Enthusiast
    2 years ago
    Wine Knowledge Level Enthusiast
    2022 Bondar Junto GSM
    Reviewing
    2022 Bondar Junto GSM
    Rated 5 out of 5 stars
    Lovely blend

    One of the better GSMs on the market and very good value.

Reviews LoadedReviews Added

A Southern Rhone style blend that is intended to be unpretentious and an easy to drink, bistro style. The Grenache leads the blend with its pretty red fruits and perfume, and the other varieties help to 'complete' the wine, elevating it to a more complex and balanced place. The main contributors to this are the Shiraz which adds flesh, and the Mataro which gives savoury spice and some structure. The fruit is all picked by hand, is handled gently in the winery, and is fermented and aged in old oak.

Price Bracket $31 to $40
Type Red
Sub Type Grenache | Blends
Body Medium Bodied
Variety Grenache
Country Australia
Region McLaren Vale
Australian State SA
Reviewed By The Wine Front
Halliday Wine Companion
Decanter
Critic Score 91
94
92
Alcohol 14%
Size 750ml
Vintage 2023
Closure Screw Cap

Bondar Wines

Andre & Selina Bondar are one of the great modern Australian wine success stories. We have been massive fans of their wines since their very first vintage and tell anyone who will listen that if you want to taste what modern McLaren Vale wines are all about then this is who you need to try.

Their home block, the highly decorated Rayner Vineyard, which straddles the Blewitt Springs and Seaview sub-regions of The Vale, was originally planted back in the 1950s but the Bondar family chapter in that vineyard's story will be its most significant. Dre and Sel's wines are honest and vibrant, built more on freshness and digestibility rather than raw South Australian power.

They make brilliant, vibrant Grenache, balanced and concentrated Shiraz, elegant Adelaide Hills Chardonnay, and one of the country's most bankable Rose wines plus a raft of small-batch alternative varieties. Their range nails quality and drinkability at every turn.

Andre & Selina Bondar - McLaren Vale, SA Discover Bondar Wines

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