Ross Estate Lights Out Shiraz 2008
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Wine
Spectator -
Robert
Parker
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Pair with steak, lamb, barbeques and hearty stews.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Rich in texture, this full-bodied Shiraz offers ripe currant, plum and spice flavors, with a wave of coffee and tobacco notes making the finish more interesting. Drink now through 2018. 3,500 cases made.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
2008 Lights Out Shiraz has a deep garnet-purple color and lifted aromas of warm blackberries and black cherry compote over tar, aniseed, slightly burned toast, vanilla pod and nutmeg. Full bodied with very high acid, the palate lends just enough fruit and a medium level of chewy tannins. The finish is long and straightforward. Drink it now through 2014.
Other Vintages
2006-
Robert
Parker
Marked by an unmistakable deep purple hue and savory aromatics, Syrah makes an intense, powerful and often age-worthy red. Native to the Northern Rhône, Syrah achieves its maximum potential in the steep village of Hermitage and plays an important component in the Red Rhône Blends of the south, adding color and structure to Grenache and Mourvèdre. Syrah is the most widely planted grape of Australia and is important in California and Washington. Sommelier Secret—Such a synergy these three create together, the Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre trio often takes on the shorthand term, “GSM.”
Historically and presently the most important wine-producing region of Australia, the Barossa Valley is set in the Barossa zone of South Australia, where more than half of the country’s wine is made. Because the climate is very hot and dry, vineyard managers work diligently to ensure grapes reach the perfect levels of phenolic ripeness.
The intense heat is ideal for plush, bold reds, particularly Shiraz on its own or Rhône Blends. Often Shiraz and Cabernet partner up for plump and powerful reds.
While much less prevalent, light-skinned varieties such as Riesling, Viognier or Semillon produce vibrant Barossa Valley whites.
Most of Australia’s largest wine producers are based here and Shiraz plantings date back as far as the 1850s or before. Many of them are dry farmed and bush trained, still offering less than one ton per acre of inky, intense, purple juice.