Winemaker Notes
Brooding, vibrant black with bright purple hues. Absolute purity, black fruit aromas complemented by notes of fragrant spice. Seamless, rich and full-bodied with black plum flavors intermingling with dried spice and finely balanced supple tannin. Impressive yet restrained.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A profound example of Ebenezer fruit and skilled winemaking, the 2017 Amon Ra Shiraz is full-bodied and velvety in texture, picking up more nuances the longer it sits in the glass. Floral and mint notes appear on the nose, along with a mix of raspberries, blackberries and baking spices. There's plenty of new oak, but it's been mostly absorbed into the wine, leaving a drink that's rich and sumptuous. And just when you think it's over, a bit of licorice appears on the long finish to add a pleasant finale.
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James Suckling
This is a very bold, rich statement of ripe blackberries and plums, swathed in spicy oak. Chocolate and sweet-earth notes and a spear of lemon-like acidity through firm, assertive tannins.
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Wine Spectator
Fresh herb and earth notes add a savory edge to the dense, toothsome core of spiced plum and cassis flavors. Black tea, white pepper and sarsaparilla details linger on the finish, with thick, velvety tannins. Drink now through 2034.
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.