The nose is a riot of licorice allsorts, intense fresh plums, baking spices and marzipan. There's a vibrancy to the fruit character that is startling in its clarity and directness. It's the kind of aroma that playfully invades your nostrils before you've made a concerted effort to inhale. Quite voluminous, primary and delicious.
Happily, the palate showcases a lot of flavour, firm structure and minimal oak influence. The entry is spiced and aniseed-laced, with dark fruit bubbling up from underneath these savoury notes. On the middle palate, plenty of plum fruit with some tart skins, more spice and a bit of heat. Reasonable, though not overwhelming, intensity. It's very fruit driven and generous, and retains shape and flow thanks to the acid structure. The after palate lightens a shade and suggests very ripe red fruit plus some stemmy complexity. The finish echoes juicy plums in tart mode.
This wine is quite hard to write about because its strengths lie in abstract notions of drinkability and balance. Certainly, I've not had many wines of late that are as purely, joyously quaffable as this, all without resorting to a "lowest common denominator" flavour profile. Indeed, it speaks very much to its region and connects well with how Barossa Shiraz grapes might be best expressed. Buy a bottle, relax with a favourite food and let this wine enhance your quality of life.
By golly, you've nailed it all in that TN. Everything right down to the complex part about its quaffable, fruit driven nature without resorting to lowest common denominator thing! Nice work.
Thanks Jeremy. It's so terribly drinkable. In fact, it's one of those wines that I had finished before completing the note (very rare). I was still typing as I polished off the last mouthful and, although I felt I had a handle on the wine at that point, I did wish for another glass just to be sure. :)
I agree Julian. We polished off a bottle last night and were dissapointed to get to the end. This is a great value for money wine!
Mel, yes it's definitely one of those wines and, as you say, good value. I think its freshness and vitality are what make it so easy to drink.
wow! few questions jul, where abouts this can be picked up for eighteen bones in oz and how do you see this progresses down the track?
HI "Max," I picked this up at Dan Murphy (Sunnybank), so I should imagine the larger chains will be selling at around this price point. In terms of ageing, there's probably enough acid to ensure some life, but I'd hate to lose the freshness of this wine's fruit, which for me is one of its principal pleasures. Very much a matter of taste.
I had this again last night, and can now attest to its suitability as an accompaniment to hot chips. :)