Two new world reds

Tonight I tasted two different reds; a Shiraz from Australia, and a California Cab.

The first wine was Mandu Shiraz 2007. I was excited to try this for two reasons; I like Shiraz, and this is from the area of Great Western, and I've never had a wine from that area. (Also, since I'm watching the Australian Open, I feel I should drink an Aussie wine). I'm not sure if this wine is characteristic of the area or not, but I wasn't crazy about it. Less fruit forward than most Shiraz that I've had, with roses and lanolin on the nose. Not very complex, and for a wine costing (IIRC) about $15, disappointing. I'm hoping to try another Shiraz from Great Western to find out if it's the area or just this wine, but I won't be trying this one again.

Since the first wine was less than wonderful, I opened another. This time the Inkling Cabernet, from Paso Robles California. A slightly odd nose, that improved considerably upon using the Venturi (if you don't have a Venturi aerator, I highly recommend getting one). After the aeration, it had a nose not too untypical of Paso Robles, with cherry, brambles, and a little earth. But on the palate, pleasant, but lacking depth. At $10, not bad, but not great either. I think this would be a good wine for a burger cook-out, but I would prefer something else in most other settings (like the similar priced Coastline, also from Paso Robles).
Recommended, but only for casual settings.