For any and all who love brightness and tension in their glass, Michael Downer’s 2023 releases hit the bullseye. Twenty-twenty-three was, of course, a cool, wet, late and nerve-wracking vintage; a bugger of a year that tested even the most experienced of heads. And yet, as we always say, the cream rises to the top: the finest Adelaide Hills growers have shone this year, crafting genuine cool-climate wines marked by fine, intense fruit flavours, lacy structures and refreshing natural acidity.Murdoch Hill’s new vineyard at Lenswood emerged as the ace in the pack. Downer purchased this hillside vineyard in 2022, and its crop significantly contributes to this year's Artisan releases. Lenswood, it seems, is a vineyard for all occasions. A case in point, Downer’s crystalline 2023 Tilbury showcases what he terms “unmistakable power and drive the Lenswood site delivers, even in cooler years.” Even so, to temper the wine’s highly strung acidity, Michael allowed the wine to go through full malo and used more barriques than usual.Like the Chardonnay, the Lenswood Vineyard forms the backbone of this year’s Phaeton Pinot Noir. The mature, own-rooted vines bring lovey spice, sous bois complexity and fine, chalky structure while the Picadilly fruit adds plenty of vibrant pop at the top end. Michael has worked with the same small group of Picadilly growers since this label’s advent, and he has no plans to stop now. The balance of bass and treble makes for mouthwatering tension in this year’s release.Downer’s savoury, sinewy Landau Syrah, cropped from the home vineyard at Oakbank, completes the lineup. The 2023 is a bona-fide cool-clime Syrah; thirteen per cent of deliciously understated floral-flecked red fruit and refreshingly fine-boned tannin. Cool nights and altitude give “an extra level of spice, elegance and restraint to Adelaide Hills Syrah,” says Downer, one of the Adelaide Hills’ leading protagonists.Michael is justly proud of his 2023 wines. These challenging years showcase the passion and persistence which mark all great winemakers. A well-known grower in Burgundy once told us that he is happier making great wines from a complicated, underrated year than a higher-scoring wine from a hyped vintage. It is these vintages—years that require an intense level of graft and precision beyond the norm—that separate the best from the rest. Put another way, when the growing gets tough, the tough get growing.