Barossa Valley Estate is a cooperative formed in Barossa Valley in 1984 when 80 longtime grape growers banded together to make their own wine. The federal government was at the time offering subsidies to grape growers who pulled out Shiraz vineyards and planted Chardonnay instead, but the 80 growers of old vine Shiraz decided to buck the trend toward Chardonnay and buy winemaking equipment. Today the cooperative remains 100% owned by growers and the family of BVE wines are sold around the world. The wines are all Shiraz and the signature bottling is the E&E Black Pepper Shiraz, which regularly wins compliments and high ratings from reviewers. Wine Spectator rated the 2002 Black Pepper Shiraz at 97 pts and called it “dark, juicy and profound, with layer upon layer of flavor seamlessly knit into a cohesive whole…”