Elephant Hill Airavata Syrah 2013 $95 ★★★★★ This wine was 3.5 years in the making. Choosing the best possible syrah rows, adopting a specific canopy management strategy to grow ‘super syrah’ and then working on it with kid gloves in the winery to create the first ‘Icon’ syrah since 2009. This Airavata (meaning ‘the king-god of … Read More
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Elephant Hill Gimblett Gravels Syrah 2013
Elephant Hill Gimblett Gravels Syrah 2013 $69 ★★★★★ According to winemaker Steve Skinner, they did 33 different picks across their syrah vineyards, which, for a smallish, 200-odd tonne winery is a huge effort “but it was so worth it because we were able to single out some absolutely stunning parcels to make wines like this … Read More
Saint Clair Gimblett Gravels Syrah 2013
Saint Clair Gimblett Gravels Syrah 2013 $23 ★★★½ Being a pioneering Marlborough producer hasn’t stopped the Saint Clair crew from forging further into northern climes to nab themselves some prime red wine territory in Hawke’s Bay. This syrah has all those classic plum, violet and pepper-driven spice characters that you’ll be asking for, alongside good … Read More
Hogshead Old Vine Shiraz 2014
Hogshead Old Vine Shiraz 2014 $19 ★★★★ Fruit sourced from old vines in the Barossa, McLaren Vale and Lower Murray regions have been used to create this wine, which is glossy and dark in the glass and saturates the mouth and nostrils with ripe, rumpty raspberry and cherry notes before being boosted by blackcurrant and a … Read More
Chocolate Box Cherry Chocolate GSM 2013
Chocolate Box Cherry Chocolate GSM 2013 $23 ★★★★ If you prefer your reds to be sweet, plummy, plush and velvety-smooth, then this will definitely spin your wheels because it’s all of the above and more. Juicy, generous dark fruit, loads of spice and chocka with chocolate, this blend of grenache, shiraz and mourvedre is fleshy, … Read More
The Barry Bros. Shiraz Cabernet 2013
The Barry Bros. Shiraz Cabernet 2013 $23 ★★★★½ Tom and Sam Barry are the 20-somethings who made this little cracker that scooped the trophy for Champion Shiraz Cabernet blend at the Royal Queensland Show AND took out the Champion Shiraz Cabernet blend trophy at the Melbourne Wine Show last year. It’s a generous and juicy, … Read More
St John’s Road Blood and Courage Barossa Shiraz 2013
St John’s Road Blood and Courage Barossa Shiraz 2013 $20 ★★★½ Produced from fruit grown in the Seppeltsfield, Stonewell, Bethany and Ebeneezer sub-districts of the Barossa Valley, this is a very pretty, vanilla and berry-scented red that carries dusty, leather and cocoa characters alongside sweet, juicy fruit edged with creamy, chocolatey notes and smooth, earthy … Read More
Barossa Valley Estate Shiraz 2012
Barossa Valley Estate Shiraz 2012 $22 ★★★★ The inside of the glass is coated in a film of inky magenta-black on the first swirl, while on the nose it has what I can describe only as the smell of a large bowl of ageing plums and berries slowly fermenting inside a carpenter’s workshop – all earthy … Read More
The Willows Vineyard Barossa Valley Shiraz 2010
The Willows Vineyard Barossa Valley Shiraz 2010 $34 ★★★★ Deeply meaty on the nose and palate, this is definitely more on the savoury side for shiraz and way less jammy than most. In fact, there’s a distinct roasting pan, gravy-like richness to this wine that oozes personality and depth. It also has good, solid acidity to … Read More
Kendall-Jackson Vintners Reserve Syrah 2012
Kendall-Jackson Vintners Reserve Syrah 2012 $35 ★★★★ This is basically the Sade of red wine, a smooth operator if ever there was one. Soft, sweet boysenberry, cherry, chocolate and liquorice aromas and flavours lead to velvety, elastic tannins and a long, silky finish. If you’ve never tried a Californian syrah and want to get amongst … Read More