Innocent Bystander Shiraz 2010
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Spectator
Wine -
Parker
Robert
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Winemaker Notes
Not your blockbuster warm-climate Aussie Shiraz, this is a more elegant example reminiscent of violets, pink peppercorns, nutmeg and caramelized quince and mulberries. The palate is restrained, offering fruit compote with slightly meaty undertones. This wine is closer in resemblance to Syrah's from the Rhone Valley in France than the rich and chewy Shiraz's that are more typical in Australia. Enjoy with roasted vegetables, panzanella salad, hearty stews, ribs, steak, and flavorful cheeses. Enjoy now through 2014.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
A smooth, lilting red, offering blueberry and spice flavors that dance through a lively finish. Drink now. 1,000 cases imported.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2010 Syrah is intensely scented of freshly crushed blackberries, cassis and eucalyptus with suggestions of licorice and powdered cinnamon. Medium-bodied, the palate reveals expressive fruit, a medium level of rounded tannins, medium to high / balanced acidity and a long finish.
Innocent Bystander is an estate-based wine grower and winemaker in the Yarra Valley, one hour east of Melbourne, Australia, crafting wines to reflect the purest interpretation of each varietal. Innocent Bystander’s close-knit team has a long standing track record delivering a range of wines with a personality all their own: distinctly regional and varietally expressive. In 2023, its wineries and vineyards were certified sustainable by Sustainable Winegrowing Australia.
Winemaking, headed by Joel Tilbrook, is carried out at Innocent Bystander’s modern artisanal winery, a facility designed for hand-crafting small, individual batches of wine with a natural winemaking philosophy, while making quality the priority. Using 100% hand-picked fruit, wild ferments and gravity-flow winemaking techniques, the wines are made with minimal filtration and fining.
Though Syrah originated in the Rhône Valley of France, Australia is home to the oldest Syrah (called Shiraz here) vines on the planet. Found in Australia’s Barossa Valley, where phylloxera has never threated viticulture, these ancient vines are between 140 to 175 years old!
Having brought fame and merit to the country’s wine scene since the early 1950s, namely via the debut of Penfolds Grange, today Syrah (Shiraz) claims rank as the most widely planted grape in Australia. In fact, the amount of land dedicated to Shiraz in Australia is now almost equivalent to what it is in France. Australian Shiraz has its own personality with flavors and aromas of intense blackberry, fruitcake, menthol, tobacco leaf and umami. Conveniently one can find great Australian Shiraz at a variety of price points but the very best will be dense, gloriously complex and capable of long aging.