Winemaker Notes
Full flavored with juicy dark red berries, hints of spice, earth, tar and leather, with seamlessly integrated oak. Mouthcoating tannins are apparent but not overwhelming.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Commencing with the 2018 vintage, Mr. Riggs's Shiraz—first bottled in 2001—takes on the initials of Ben's father, John Frederick Riggs. The 2018 J.F.R. Shiraz is sourced from three distinct subregions of McLaren Vale and was aged in a mix of French and American oak, about 35% new. Full-bodied and plush, it's a lovely amalgam of cedar, vanilla and mixed berries—supple and rich, concentrated and flavorful, balanced and long. In short, it's a terrific wine that should drink well for more than a decade.
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James Suckling
Plenty of rich red to dark berries on the nose with chocolate and vanilla, too. The palate is quite juicy and rich with smooth, supple tannins and a big core of ripe, sweet red berries and plums. Drink now.
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.”
Known for opulent red wines with intense power and concentration, McLaren Vale is home to perhaps the most “classic” style of Australian Shiraz. Vinified on its own or in Rhône Blends, these hot-climate wines are deeply colored and high in extract with signature hints of dark chocolate and licorice. Cabernet Sauvignon is also produced in a similar style.
Whites, often made from Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc tend to be opulent and full of tropical, stone and citrus fruit.