Winemaker Notes
A joint venture between Robert Mondavi and Rosemount Estate, the wine was blended by Tim Mondavi, Philip Shaw and Ian Shepherd.
"We really wanted to create something different with this Shiraz-we didn't want to do another ripe, opulent, warm climate Shiraz-we wanted a wine with bright fruit character with a velvet like palate.
The Coonawarra portion provides the fruit lift to the nose-a combination of red cherry with a touch of eucalytus and spice. It was great to add some Barosa Shiraz to flesh out the mid-palate. The fine-tuning was adding small portions of McLaren Vale and Margaret River Shiraz which gave the wine additional intensity and flavor length."
-winemaker Ian Shepherd
Professional Ratings
Though Syrah originated in the Rhône Valley of France, Australia is home to the oldest Syrah (called Shiraz here) vines on the planet. Found in Australia’s Barossa Valley, where phylloxera has never threated viticulture, these ancient vines are between 140 to 175 years old!
Having brought fame and merit to the country’s wine scene since the early 1950s, namely via the debut of Penfolds Grange, today Syrah (Shiraz) claims rank as the most widely planted grape in Australia. In fact, the amount of land dedicated to Shiraz in Australia is now almost equivalent to what it is in France. Australian Shiraz has its own personality with flavors and aromas of intense blackberry, fruitcake, menthol, tobacco leaf and umami. Conveniently one can find great Australian Shiraz at a variety of price points but the very best will be dense, gloriously complex and capable of long aging.