Teal Lake Shiraz (OU Kosher) 2002
Winemaker Notes
Nurtured by the rich Murray River bank soil, the vineyard was established over 25 years ago. From a first year grape intake of 3,000 tons, Andrew Peace now crushes over 20,000 tons per year.
While long established, the winery is utterly contemporary, driven with sound business acumen, and utilizes first class technology. With this combination, it’s no surprise that the winery is consistently among the top 20 performing Australian exporters and boasts a litany of awards to its name. Victorian Vineyard of the year in 1997, Telstra Small Business of the Year in 1999 and Emerging Exporter Award in 2001 are just a few of its accolades. Meanwhile, the ever expanding product range consistently receives medals.
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.