Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Tasting the 2011 Art Series Shiraz in 2023 makes it 12 years old this year. It's full of plum skin, hints of loquat, star anise and damsons. In the mouth, the mulberry and blueberry come to the fore. This is now, at this point, a sedate and balanced wine, with the tannins fully ameliorated into the fruit. This wine is placid, zen, lovely. The fruit for this wine was wholly sourced from the estate Peppy Park vineyard, 17 kilometers south of the main estate vineyard in Boodjidup. The fruit went over a sorting table, followed by a five-day cold soak. There is up to 20% whole bunch in this cuvée (none in 2017 or 2019), and it is composed of 100% WA Clone. The wine was matured for 18 months in 600-liter demi-muids (Rhone and a Bordelais coopers). "Our priority is opening up the canopies to obtain proper solarization of bunches," said Lovett.
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.”
Home to some of Australia’s most elegant and long-lived red and white wines, Margaret River is situated in the farthest reaches of Western Australia. Relatively warm and dry, the region is cooled by breezes from the Indian Ocean. Margaret River takes some inspiration from Bordeaux, producing top-quality Cabernet Sauvignons and Bordeaux Blends with firm structure, mouthwatering acidity, balanced alcohol and notes of herbs and spice. For white wines, refreshing blends of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon as well as complex, age-worthy Chardonnays are regional specialties.