Winemaker Notes
Deep red in color, this wine offers aromas of blackberries, loganberries, mulberries and hints of espresso and dark chocolate. On the palate, it has huge length of flavor, yet it is refined. Beautifully raw, yet elegant.
Professional Ratings
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Wine & Spirits
The Kaesler family planted its first vines in Barossa in the 1890s, including a parcel of shiraz in Marananga on schist soils over clay dating to 1899. The 2012 Alte Reben, pulled from those old vines, rested for 20 months in French oak barrels, one-third of them new, before bottling without fining or filtration. It stands out, even in a blind tasting, for its lasting power and old-vine complexity, a lively saturation of black olive, truffle and brighter notes of mint. There’s some youthful sweetness to the fruit, even at six years of age, but there’s so much depth to the flavor that the sweetness becomes subliminal richness. For now, this needs several days to show itself, suggesting it will need a decade or more in the cellar to fully develop.
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.