Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This is sexy stuff that proprietor Roman Bratasiuk says is “more Côte-Rôtie” than his other Syrahs. Its perfumed nose offers up hints of violets and cracked pepper to go along with raspberry fruit, while it’s supple in the mouth—almost too easy—with pretty mixed berry flavors and a nib of bitter chocolate. Long and elegant on the finish. Drink now–2015.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2004 Syrah Liandra was fashioned from 100-year-old vines grown in clay and sandy soils. Its inky/purple color is followed by a big, sweet nose of creme de cassis, blackberries, tar, and hints of smoke and bay leaves. Full-bodied, opulent, and rich with low acidity as well as sweet tannin, it can be drunk young or cellared for 10-15+ years.
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Wine Spectator
Polished, generous and aristocratic, with currant and boysenberry flavors strongly shaded with mint and eucalyptus overtones, gliding smoothly into the long, open-textured finish. Best from 2010 through 2020. 500 cases imported.
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Wine & Spirits
The aromas are intriguing, as if you'd just opened a jar of exotic fruit jam from the outback. Then the palate is syrupy, a juicy mass of fascinating flavor. You have to like thick wines, but if you do, Liandra is worth seeking out.
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.”
Known for opulent red wines with intense power and concentration, McLaren Vale is home to perhaps the most “classic” style of Australian Shiraz. Vinified on its own or in Rhône Blends, these hot-climate wines are deeply colored and high in extract with signature hints of dark chocolate and licorice. Cabernet Sauvignon is also produced in a similar style.
Whites, often made from Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc tend to be opulent and full of tropical, stone and citrus fruit.