Winemaker Notes
Deep violet red with a purple hue. Bouquet: Fresh blackberries and violets swathed in savory tones of black pepper, aniseed and dried herbs. Palate: Inviting mid-weighted dark fruit flavors dance around the palate and continue with fine grained tannins and length. This vibrant and finely structured wine is great to enjoy now with food but will soften and gain complexity over the next 10 years. Ideal to drink with a gamy meat dish and all the trimmings.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Distinctive, cool-climate aromas of red berries, pepper, toasted spices, bacon fat and cocoa, sitting in fresh, complex mode. The palate is elegant, fine and fresh with long, silky tannins delivering fresh red-plum and blackberry flavors. Silky finish
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Wine Enthusiast
From one of Australia’s most treasured estates, this cool-climate Shiraz from western Victoria is a little meaty and mushroomy at first, the plum and currant fruit trailing just behind. It has cola-like polish from the oak influence and an underbelly of flowers and spices. Despite the fruit plushness on the palate, there’s still verve, freshness and a smudged charcoal texture to the powerful tannins. Drink now–2025.
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.”
Nestled into the tip of its southeastern coastline, Victoria is Australia’s smallest mainland state, second most populous and third largest wine producer. Victoria includes the cool regions of Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula and Geelong, made famous mainly by impressive Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
The more inland Heathcote and Bendigo lead the way for complex and textured, full-bodied reds. Rutherglen’s fortified wines compete among the best on the planet.