Winemaker Notes
At Fetish Wines, we value this level of attention to every step of the winemaking process, from the soil to the bottle. We do not want to manipulate wine, but to craft it by the subtle direction that can only be achieved through an intimate relationship with the land.
For this wine, Rolf Binder is The Watcher
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Spectator
Supple, generous and deftly balanced to show plenty of ripe cherry and plum fruit, shaded with sweet spices. But there's not a lot of weight, and this finishes with elegance and restraint. Shiraz. Best from 2010 through 2020.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2006 The Watcher Shiraz offers up a nose of wood-smoke, tar, blueberry, and blackberry. This leads to a thick, structured wine with excellent layering of fruit, intense flavors, and a lengthy, fruit-filled finish. Give it 2-3 years to unfold and drink it through 2016.
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.