Give me Cabernet or GSM, Merlot or Pinot – anything but Shiraz
‘Shiraz is the wine on everyone’s lips,’ writes Huon Hooke in his latest newsletter. ‘About 28% of all Australian wine is shiraz, more than one in four bottles – an almost incredible statistic.’ The latest Winestate magazine is running the World’s Greatest Shiraz Challenge, and has rounded up almost 600 wines. There’s even a website dedicated to the variety http://www.shiraz.com.au/ , which turns out be more about food.
‘Shiraz is Australia’s distinctive red,’ writes Andrew Corrigan in Winestate, ‘ and our most famous offering to the world of wine.’ Then follows the usual list of Shiraz Greats starting with Grange, Hill of Grace, Mount Langi Ghiran and the rest. Yawn. How did it come to this? As usual, Robert Parker had a lot to do with it, flying down under in the nineties and giving 99 point scores to massive Shiraz reds from McLaren Vale, the Barossa and Heathcote.
What happened to Cabernet Shiraz?
Half a century ago, Shiraz was Australia’s workhorse variety. Every winery made lots of it, and other red varieties like Grenache and Mataro were held in very low esteem. Many labels proudly proclaimed that the wine inside was made from 100% Shiraz (with none of that inferior stuff mixed in). This was before a new generation of winemakers discovered the joys of Rhone Style blends.
Half a century ago, our winemakers rarely travelled overseas – the cost was a big factor then. When they did, it was usually to learn more about Sherry and Port making – that’s why Penfolds sent Max Schubert to Europe. His trip to Bordeaux was pure serendipity. In Bordeaux, Cabernet was king, but we didn’t have more than a few vines down under so Max had to use Shiraz. A decade later, Cabernet had become the variety every other winemaker wanted to get his hands on.
By the mid-sixties, there was almost enough of it to go around. Penfolds used to blend theirs with Shiraz to make Bin 389. Now it launched Bin 707 Cabernet Sauvignon. Other wineries followed, but Cabernet Shiraz blends stood unchallenged at the top of the heap for years to come. It was a unique combination in the world of wine, a blend that no other country had ever made in any quantity.
The Great Australian Red is not a straight Shiraz
The two varieties were a good combo, much like the haughty aristocrat and his down-to-earth servant. One was all elegance and finesse, the other warm, spicy and earthy. In 2006, well inside the current Shiraz fad, Tyson Stelzer and Mathew Jukes launched THE GREAT AUSTRALIAN RED challenge to ensure that the iconic Aussie red blend got the recognition it deserved.
The 2013 challenge is now open. Last year’s overall winner was Thorn Clarke’s Shotfire Cabernet Shiraz 2010, a $20 wine that once again proves our premise that you don’t need to spend big money to drink great wines. A strange twist is that you can still buy this wine at Kemenys. Thorn Clarke got the big double last year, also winning the under $20 category with its Terra Barossa Shiraz Cabernet 2010, a $15 wine you can still buy at Winestar. I wasn’t really convinced by the winners, which were both a bit big and obvious, lacking finesse.
Last year saw a surprising number of big names that languished lower down the rankings – silver and bronze or nothing (as usual, four out of five wines got a medal of some kind). Among them:
Penfolds Wines Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz 2010
Glaetzer Wines Anaperenna 2010
Tappanappa Wines Whalebone Vineyard Cabernet Shiraz 2008
Jacob’s Creek Wines Johann Shiraz Cabernet 2005
Jacob’s Creek Wines St Hugo Winemaker Series Cabernet Shiraz 2009
Wynns Coonawarra Estate The Gables Coonawarra Cabernet Shiraz 2010
Wynns Coonawarra Estate V & A Lane Cabernet Shiraz 2010
Yalumba FDR1A Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz 2010
Mollydooker Wines Enchanted Path 2010
As always, the judging is open to questions, but at least the judges in this competition only had to deal with some 100 wines.
Lots of great reds on my list, but not much straight Shiraz
Last night, friends and I shared a Cullens Diana Madeline Cabernet Merlot 2002, which shows what we can do with this blend. In my book, it beat all of the grand cru Bordeaux in the same tasting. Rich, soft and seductive, wonderful style and elegance, all you could ask for in a Bordeaux blend – all at a sane 13%, and you can still buy the 2002 at Dan M’s (online) for $140. That’s a good deal, given that the current release is $100.
At the other end of the spectrum, here are some of the reds I’ve most enjoyed in recent months:
Hidden Label McLaren Vale Merlot 2011 (Richard Hamilton’s Merlot under a plain wrapper)
MadFish Gold Turtle Cabernet Merlot 2011
Cape Mentelle Trinders Cabernet Merlot 2011
Brookland Valley Verse 1 Margaret River Cabernet Merlot 2011
Brookland Valley Verse 1 Margaret River Shiraz 2011
Crabtree Watervale Shiraz 2010 – this wine doesn’t taste like a straight Shiraz J
Langdorf Barossa Valley Grenache Shiraz Mataro 2010
The Harem ‘Layla’ Barossa Valley Grenache Mataro Shiraz 2010
Hewitson Miss Harry GSM 2010
Devil’s Lair Cabernet Shiraz 2010 – the only Cab Shiraz here, and a bargain from last year.
I think Shiraz is at its best when tempered by Grenache and Mataro. The Hewitson is a great example of the style, and not too big at 14%, and not too expensive at the Wineonline sale last week at $17. Dean throws in a little Carignan and Cinsault to make the mix more interesting.
There are some straight Cabernets on the list as well – here’s the extended list with prices and sources.
Kim
