Winemaker Notes
Rich concentrated black on black. Gentle and slow aromatics of blueberry, raspberries, fresh ground pepper, wet river rocks, blood plum, fresh cigar and fresh backed rhubarb soufflé. This hits the mouth with a medium weight and then the race begins. It unfurls like rolling of a sail, never boring or uninteresting. It just penetrates and keeps pumping away, with not a whisker out of place. This wine pitches deep but then the fruit weight and slow-moving texture takes over. It is admirable in its evenness and at the end of the ride you are left with a mouthful of very persistent tannins with a slight meaty edge and underlining deep minerally energy.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2020 Bella's Garden Shiraz is from the Barossa Valley and gives us all the savory red dirt, meat and exotic spice in the mouth. This is dense, almost bullish, with very good intensity of flavor in the mouth—incredible line, actually. The tannins are omnipresent and finely knit, although they are robust, an interesting contrast of the two things. It is bloody and velvety and morphs in the mouth. It has balanced tannin and is very plush.
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Wine Spectator
Smooth and polished, but still dense and concentrated, with spiced plum, red fruit and heavy licorice and fennel seed nuances, plus Earl Grey tea, dried floral and fresh loamy details. Harmonious and focused on the long finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
This is a concentrated, rich, old-school style Shiraz with notes of cherry cola, dusting polish and blackberry jam. There's a fair lick of oak showing here. The palate is equally high octane, with powerful tannins, oodles of tangy fruit and spice. It's not for the faint of heart, but that lift of acidity keep things in check, and suggests a good deal of aging in this bottle's future.
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.